House of Suspense House of Romance
by meaganl124
Summary: Juliana, an old friend comes back to school and Jerome can't seem to hold back his excitement. What will he do? And will she help the members of Sibuna out or betray them? Is she really all that perfect? Or is she in on the teachers' conspiracy?
1. Not So New Girl

House of Anubis: Not-so new girl

Nina and Fabian were talking, trying to figure out the latest gadget they had found on the their quest when Victor called everyone to the front hall.

After the students had gathered, they stood patiently…waiting.

"We have a guest, and I expect all of you to make her feel welcome." Victor boomed.

And everyone's bored and solemn faces lit up the second they saw who it was.

"Juliana!" Patricia cried out.

And sure enough, Juliana stepped into the room, with her baggage- and she smiled brightly.

"Hey!" She said.

"Here here Julie, let me take your bags." Trudy took them.

"Oh, Trudy, that's alright. Let me."

"No no. Catch up with everyone." Trudy then at the top of the stairs called down, "Supper will be done in a half hour."

"Will you be actually staying with us now?" Patricia asked as she squeezed her friend.

"No-" Juliana started.

Only to be cut off by Victor. "Yes, someone sensible has to fix all of you."

And he left.

Amber, Mara, and Patricia were crowding Juliana by then, with hugs and loads of questions. How are you? What's new?

Juliana answered, laughing, "Well, my dad took me out last semester- which you all know. And we went traveling. And I begged to come back…so here I am."

She managed to escape her friends and saw the others.

"Mick!" She ran over and gave him a kiss on both cheeks.

"Hey Jules- how was France?" He ruffled her hair.

"Tres bien." She rolled the words off her tongue.

Nina was confused. Fabian answered her silent confusion by whispering in her ear, "They're cousins. Really close."

"Really…really close." Nina whispered back.

Juliana heard them and squealed, "Fabian!" She ran and hugged him tightly.

And that set off Nina.

"Uh…I'm sorry- I'm kind of late on this stuff but who are you?" She tried to sound as polite as possible.

"Who's the American?" Juliana whispered to her best guy friend.

"Nina. She's a new student. Nina this is Juliana- she's a friend."

"Charmed." Juliana held out her hand and Nina shook it.

Nina relaxed visibly, they were obviously just friends. And soon their relationship status was confirmed when Jerome and Alfie came in.

"Juliana? Is that you?" Alfie asked unbelieving.

Juliana just nodded, with a slight silent chuckle.

And then she saw Jerome.

"Jillian?" His blue eyes widened with joy.

"Jerome!" She nearly screamed, and she ran into his arms. "I've missed you so much."

He stroked her corn silk hair and he told her, "Oh God! I can't believe it's you!"

"Um- am I missing something?" Nina broke the romantic tension.

The pair separated, embarrassed. But their blue eyes still wouldn't leave eachother.

Then the others oohed and Juliana looked down, blushing.

"They both like eachother, but they won't admit it- not even to themselves." Amber whispered to Nina.

"They've been friends for as long as we've all gone here."

"Hey…where's Joy?" Juliana asked and everyone quieted.

"She's missing." Patricia whispered.

"Patricia!" the boys yelled to her, looking up suddenly.

"What? It's true and you all know it!"

"I should probably unpack…see you at supper." Juliana exited.

"Uh…a few things…Jerome- why did you call her Jillian? And what? Who is she?"

"Silly Nina- that's my nickname for her. I'm sure you'll find out about it soon enough." Jerome laughed. "The plot thickens…" And he swung his coat over his shoulder and went back to his room.

"She's Mick's cousin, Jerome's unofficial girlfriend, and one of all our best friends. She used to stay in another house on campus. But she's here now!"

Mick seemed to grow irate.

"Mick? Are you alright?" Mara asked him.

He jerked away from her gentle touch. "Peachy. She's not dating that idiot alright!"

Everyone stared at him. "I'm going for a run." He muttered and took off, out the door.

"Wait! Mick!" Mara ran after him.

"What's up with him?" Nina asked.

"He is just upset over the fact that Jerome and Ana are…" Alfie paused. Then he said in a girly tone, "Meant to be!"

"Oh shut up Alfie!" Patricia snapped.

"Fine fine. I'll see you all in a few." And he went back to his quarters.

Amber, Fabian, Nina, and Patricia remained and then the dinner chime rang out over the chime of the clock.

"Dinner. I'm starved!" Amber ran through the living room double doors in a hurry to reach the dining room.

Nina and Fabian looked at eachother, slightly giggled and went in after their…fashionable friend.

And Patricia rolled her eyes and went in after them all.


	2. Driven Away

At dinner, Juliana sat down in Alfie's seat.

Alfie was about to say something when Jerome came around and clamped a hand on his friend's mouth. "Grab another chair." Jerome whispered into his ear.

Then Jerome silently slipped into the chair next to Juliana.

Trudy brought out dinner and when she revealed what it was, everyone closed their eyes in anticipation. Mmmm. They could smell the steam.

Alfie tried to talk with Jerome, but Jerome paid no attention to his friend, worshiping every word that came out of Juliana's mouth.

Then Alfie got angry.

He took a handful of the pasta and flung it at Jerome.

Jerome jerked away. And Juliana stood up as she realized there was sauce in her hair and on her clothes.

"Alfie!" She cried out.

"Every time." Fabian muttered.

"Oh please, for once could we not have a food fight?" Mara asked.

"Alfie!" Jerome glared at him and watched as Juliana ran out of the room heading for the bathroom.

"Sorry. It slipped." Alfie smiled evilly, causing Jerome to throw some pasta back.

Juliana, clean- opened the door and shut it again, in time for a bowl of noodles to hit the door.

The next day, Juliana left early and she went walking around the grounds.

She caught up to Mick, who was on his early morning run.

"Mick! Mick! Wait!" She ran to catch up.

"Hey Jules, what's up?"

"What do you think of Jerome?" she narrowed her eyes.

"He's a practical jokester. I don't know when to take him seriously."

He saw his cousin's expression. "Look Jules, you don't need my approval. I'm just not sure you two are good for eachother. You two are polar…"

"Opposites." Juliana finished sadly. "I know…like you and Amber. Or you and Mara."

"What? I don't know what you're talking about." Mick immediately went into denial.

"Mick. I've been back for less than 24 hours and I see how Mara looks at you. I see how you try to deny your feelings- I see how Amber is jealous…C'mon. Let's face it. Our family is full of attracting polar opposites. Just think about that. Opposites attract."

And she jogged off, heading now for the school, looking at her watch.

"Yeah…thanks Jules." Mick slowed and smiled.

At school, Juliana was at her locker when she saw Jerome come towards her.

"Hey Jerome." She smiled pleasantly.

"Hey Jillian. Look are you-" He stopped.

"Yes?" She smiled, waiting expectantly.

"Oh never mind." And he saw a younger student. "Hey you! You got the cash?"

Juliana's smile fell. He must not like her after all.

She sighed and closed her locker and saw Fabian and Nina together.

Fabian totally liked her. She sighed. Great. The new girl from across the pond was already attracting one of the smartest, kindest, best guys at school and the returning girl had been deserted by the guy she thought really cared, and not the way everyone else did.


	3. Disaster Strikes

Nothing else really happened over the next few weeks.

Juliana settled back into the school and whenever she saw Jerome, she'd try to talk but he ignored her.

One night, Juliana snuck out of her room and went into Patricia's and Mara's room.

"Guys- wake up!" She hissed, flashing her flashlight in her sleeping friends' eyes.

"Julie! What?" Mara asked, rubbing her eyes.

"I need some advice."

"Oh no. Jerome?" Patricia groaned knowingly.

"Yes…he's been avoiding me lately. I'm afraid he doesn't want to be my friend."

The girls burst into laughter.

"What? What's wrong?" Juliana asked.

"Ana- he likes you-like so infinitely much. As much as Fabian likes Nina if not more. He's just scared that he'll make a fool of himself."

"Oh- thanks…I guess. So? What's going on with Mick-huh Mara?"

"You probably know more than me." Mara groaned.

"Your right. But I want to hear it from you."

"We kissed this morning…and I heard him tell Jerome and Alfie that we could never be together…that we're too different."

"Oh…I'm so sorry Mara." Juliana sympathized. And she cursed under her breath at her cousin- she had given him advice on this topic!

Patricia just nodded, "Told you so Mara. Now come on Julie. You better go back to your room before Victor catches you."

And they all went back to bed.

The next morning, Mara walked into school with a bad girl outfit on and Mick stared incredulously.

And then later, Jerome and Alfie came up with another scam.

Juliana saw the posters and knew this "audition" was a scam. She burst into the room.

"Jerome! Alfie!"

They turned, and Jerome darted his eyes away from her.

She marched over, "I can't believe this! Stop it right now! Or I'll go get a teacher."

Spoke too soon- the drama teacher came in and punished the boys.

And watching Jerome making a fool of himself on stage made Juliana laugh. She saw them fall to the ground and she giggled, putting her hand to her mouth to quiet herself. Then, she took pity on them. She hopped up and jumped on stage. She pulled Jerome up.

"You can't avoid me forever." She whispered.

"I'm sorry."

"I knew you were smart." And they laughed.

And when Juliana got home, she saw Patricia, Nina, Amber, and Fabian working on some sort of puzzle. Sibuna?

What did that mean?

She burst into the room.

"Can I see that puzzle?" Amber gave it over, and Juliana asked them to tell her everything or she'd tell Victor about them sneaking around in the attic and cellar all the time.

And like that- the devious Juliana became a part of Sibuna.

Things soon took a turn for the worse, Mara was still all gothic….and Alfie was now missing.

Jerome burst into her room that night.

"You have to help me Jillian. Alfie's been gone for hours and he hasn't come out of the cellar."

"The cellar? What were you two doing down there?" Jerome and Alfie weren't in on Sibuna…could they have seen everything down there?

"Alfie and I played that joke on you guys the other night- and we were going to play a joke on the 7th graders, but Alfie realized he left his mask in the cellar. So we went to get it…" Jerome seemed to choke on the words.

"Alright. Let's go." Juliana threw off the covers and put on her slippers.

Nina, Fabian, Jerome and her crept down into the basement, looking for Alfie.

"This better not be a joke." Fabian threatened.

"It's not. I swear." Jerome looked frightened. "Alfie?" he checked the wardrobe.

Suddenly there was a noise from the cupboard.

"Open it." Jerome told them.

"No- you open it." Fabian shot back.

"I'll open it." Nina told them, tired of the mini feud.

And Alfie was there.

He looked terrible.

"Alfie. It's me. Jerome." Jerome tried to tell his friend. Then the boys helped Alfie out, Nina ran ahead to open the door.

At breakfast the next morning, Juliana sat next to an empty seat, and across from another.

"Where's Jerome?"

"Haven't seen him all morning."

"Speak of the devil."

Jerome came in, terror in his eyes. "Fabian. I could use some help."

"Alfie." Everyone whispered. They got up, and followed Jerome, leaving bad girl Mara looking after them.

"Alfie. Alfie. It's us." Fabian reached out and Alfie jerked away. He looked even worse than the previous night.

Jerome's eyes widened. Nina ran to the opposite side of the bed. She reached out and Alfie jerked away again.

Juliana saw Jerome's fright and took laid her head on his shoulder, and intertwined their arms; taking his hand.

He didn't look at her but squeezed her hand. They watched as he started to sputter and Nina gave him the elixir of life that Patricia had put into her juice bottle.

Then Alfie seemed to choke and his eyes closed.

"Oh God. Oh God. Get him some water. A paper bag- they've done that in the movies." A blur of voices.

Jerome's grip tightened dramatically.

And then, as Alfie was taken to the hospital, Victor questioned everyone.

As he questioned Jerome, Jerome looked dazed.

"I don't know anything. Honestly." Jerome looked like he wanted to cry. And Juliana watched from down the hall. When Jerome came out, she ran over and looked at him, and he took a sad look at her and continued on.

She ran after him and stopped him. She looked at him and he pulled her in to hug her.

"It's alright Jerome. Alfie's going to be alright."

And he just sobbed into her hair.


	4. Falling Apart and Others Together

**Alfie was fine after all, and when the play came on, Mick and Mara kissed. Juliana patted her cousin on the back as she passed him. She went over to the camel. **

"**So guys- enjoying your big role?"**

"**Oh shut it Juliana." Alfie's voice rang out from the back of the camel. **

**She laughed in response. Only the other day, the guys had been dying in that costume, trying to get out of it unsuccessfully. **

**Nina was gone. She had went to try to open the safe and get the latest piece of the mystery back from Victor. **

**Jerome tried to hit on a girl at one point, and Juliana watched, wanting to throw her punch in the girl's face. But when Jerome crashed and burned- she felt much better. **

**Then, after the play ended- everything got weird. **

**Joy was there…and then disappeared. Patricia soon disappeared as well- after Rufus- which caused Amber and Nina to go looking for her. And they hadn't returned yet. **

**But, Juliana didn't really notice. **

**She was too busy catching up on her work- and during that- Jerome and Alfie had dinner with Alfie's parents. **

**Soon, after they left- they played a prank on Mick.**

**Juliana had just been coming down the stairs when she heard them talking about Jerome's parents being awful. **

**She didn't stop them as they went to play the prank. She rested her cheek on the railing and sighed.**

**She never heard him talk about his parents. Not once in the whole time they had known eachother. **

**But it wasn't the last time she'd hear about them. **

**The next day after class, Jerome started hitting on Mara. **

**Juliana saw from behind and became increasingly jealous. Was he hitting on her because he liked her? Or just to mess with Mick and her? **

**It was the play all over again. **

**When everyone was lounging around, catching up on work, Mara and Jerome were talking. And the subject of Jerome's parents came up. **

**Jerome clammed up, took his stuff and left. **

**Mara asked, "Did I say something?"**

**And Jerome hastily replied, "No no. Places to be. Things to see. Very busy." **

**Juliana stood up, glared at Mara and ran after Jerome.**

"**Jerome!" She called out, as she jogged into the hall. She stopped. He was gone. **

**Later, she walked in on Jerome and Mara- but they didn't notice her.**

**Mara apologized and Jerome told her that he had been in a boys' home since the age of 5. **

**He got all deep and sensitive, which both girls noticed. Mara mocked him and he got up to leave. **

**Juliana nodded, glad their flirtation had gone astray. **

**Then Mara apologized again and they left. **

**Again, the same thing happened when the nominations came 'round.**

**Jerome nominated Mara and Juliana stared at him incredulously. How could he? She was jealous. More so than before. This was Mara. Sometimes betrayal comes from the people you least expect. **

**Everywhere Juliana went, Jerome was with Mara- playing chess with her. He was smart. Mara didn't seem to have known that. **

**Juliana thought to herself, "I knew he was smart already. I'm right here. Why does he like her! She has Mick…or is she coming onto him just because Mick is gone?" **

**Alfie came in and asked Jerome to come hang out, but Jerome declined. Juliana wanted to go and rip Mara's hair out. She was messing with Jerome's head now too! **

**She felt a twinge better when Alfie's skateboard flew across the chess table- ruining their game. **

**Alfie soon was abandoned by Jerome; left to hang out with Patricia. According to him, Jerome liked Mara now.**

**At supper, he even teased Jerome about it. Juliana came to supper late and Mara sat in her seat.**

**She stood there and no one noticed she was even there. So she turned and walked out of the room, and slumped down in the chair by the phone and started to cry. **

**Mara was ruining everything. She realized it wasn't just her jealously raging, but her heart breaking along with it. **

**She sat there for the whole time, nobody bothering to come out and find her-not even Trudy. Victor had passed her, shook his head and continued on his way.**

**The phone rang and she immediately picked up. **

"**Hello?" she whispered.**

"**Hello? Jules is that you?" Mick.**

"**Oh. Hey Mick." She wiped away her tears.**

"**How's everything? Are you okay?"**

"**Yeah. Yeah I'm fine." She tried to laugh. A miserable attempt.**

"**Jules. Are you sure? Did something happen?" he knew her all too well. **

"**No. Everything's fine. What about you? How was tryouts?" **

**Mick hesitated. He knew something was wrong- but he'd figure it out soon enough when he got back. He then launched into a full report, and Juliana laughed and spoke in all the right places. **

**Finally he asked, "How's Mara?"**

"**I don't know. Ask her yourself." Juliana stated sourly.**

"**Jules. What is-"**

"**Mara! Mick is on the line! Pick it up!" Juliana screamed over Mick's voice.**

**Mara rushed in and grabbed away the phone.**

"**Hey Mick. Yeah. I miss you too." She smiled to Juliana, and Juliana smiled back and as soon as her back was turned she rolled her eyes and walked back into the dining room.**

**Jerome was doing the chores, Alfie was nowhere to be seen, Nina, Patricia and Fabian were all huddled in the corner- talking about the regained puzzle piece no doubt, and Amber sat at the dining table, a scarf around her head and she squealed, "Julie! Let me do your numerology!"**

**Juliana went over and she got a perfect score with Jerome.**

**Well, nearly perfect.**

"**Do…Jerome and Mara." Juliana eyed the sheet with Mara's information on it. **

"**Why?"**

"**I don't know."**

"**Alright."**

**Mara and Jerome got a perfect score. **

"**So she's perfect with Jerome and Mick!" they both whined.**

"**Are you jealous?" they asked eachother in unison.**

"**You still like Mick." Juliana grinned at Amber. **

"**No! Well…sorta…yeah. But don't tell a soul!" Amber insisted.**

"**My lips are sealed." Juliana grinned.**

"**So…Jerome huh?"**

**Jerome was standing in the kitchen. And Juliana looked towards him. Even though he wasn't looking and not seemingly paying attention. She knew he would catch every word they were saying.**

**He had. He was smiling to himself. A perfect score for Mara.**

**Juliana pulled Amber out of the room and across the hall into the bathroom.**

"**I am jealous, I admit it. I like Jerome so much and I thought he liked me but now…"**

**Amber said nothing. She didn't have anything to say.**

**Everything was written in plain black-and-white.**

**Jerome must've moved on. **


	5. Everything is Always Seemingly Perfect

Juliana walked past the lockers on the way to class and saw Jerome and Mara talking, curious, she hid and listened.

"Would you fancy lunch with me somewhere off campus?"

Her jaw dropped. Jerome was actually asking Mara out!

The only consolation was when Mara denied it and walked away. She was still into Mick- her excuse.

Jerome sure was jealous. He called Mick a "meathead" and a "loser."

Jerome really liked her didn't he?

No wonder Mick wasn't too fond of Jerome…Jerome also wasn't to fond of Mick.

Juliana was angry at Jerome for calling her cousin those things, but she knew she'd let it slide. As much as she loved Mick- she loved the other main man in her life too.

Then, due to the elections coming up, there were posters everywhere.

Alfie put up an awful one of Mara that Juliana just had to laugh at, Mara put a boring, evil one up that would make people think she was a dictator instead of a representative nominee, and Jerome put up a good one. Each one went on top of the other.

She caught Mara and Jerome together, talking about the posters.

Jerome had the same reaction to Mara's and Alfie's posters as she had.

If only Jerome could see that she was right there.

Suddenly, Mick appeared and Mara got up to hug him.

Jerome threw the papers down, obviously angry.

Juliana just smiled. She knew he was coming home early. He had told her so. She then realized she didn't want to be seen by Mick- as he would ask why she had been weird on the phone the other night, and she didn't want that in front of Jerome.

So, she left.

At lunch, Juliana was walking back to the house when she saw Jerome sitting beneath a big, ancient willow tree- in its shade.

"Jerome!" She waved.

He opened his eyes and looked around. He saw her and he smiled, waving her over.

She followed, and once near him- took her book bag off her shoulder and set it down gently.

"What are you doing here all alone at lunch?" Juliana asked.

"I could ask you the same thing."

"I'm not alone. I have you." Juliana paused suddenly, afraid he'd interpret the subtext.

"Well, I got rejected for a date." he laughed to himself.

"Oh. Really? Well. I'm here. We'll have a fantastic lunch and you can go tell everyone that…we were on a date." Juliana sounded hopeful.

"Great idea! Jillian sometimes I feel you're even smarter than Mara."

Juliana wanted to kiss him, right then and there- but she felt it wasn't the right time.

They pulled out their lunches.

Jerome took out an apple and Juliana pulled out a peanut butter-jelly sandwich.

"Here." Juliana took the other half and gave it to Jerome. "You can't survive on fruit."

"You'd be surprised what I can withstand…thanks." He took it and their hands touched. They looked up and into each other's eyes. They gravitated towards eachother and then…

Alfie suddenly appeared. "Hey! Jerome…is that Juliana? Are you two on a secret date?"

They jerked apart, and Juliana sat back and closed her eyes.

Of course. She had been so close!

"No. No…" Jerome quickly denied.

"Well- you two should. I think it would be…cute?" Alfie searched for the right word.

"Alfie." Jerome sighed. "Just go okay?"

"Oh…okay…see you later." Jerome couldn't just dump him for Mara but now Juliana!

He'd get revenge.

But when he walked into the house and saw Mick and Mara get back together- he realized it wasn't Mara he needed to mess with. Mick and Mara would stir up its own trouble. It was Juliana he needed for his new mastermind plan…

Juliana stood up, grabbing her bag. "I'm sorry."

"Wait. For what?" Jerome stood up too.

"I don't know…"

"Look. Why don't you come by my room at say…10:15?"

"Why?"

"Alfie wants us on a date. Fine. He can see us go on a real one."

"So. I get dressed up…the whole bit?"

"Yes." Jerome seemed pleased with the outcome of this.

"Sure. I'll sneak down. Alfie will probably follow us or something." Juliana laughed.

"That would be funny." Jerome agreed.

And Jerome held out his arm, so she could loop hers through. "Shall we?"

She put her arm through. "Lead the way." And they grabbed their stuff and skipped along, laughing the whole way.

That night, while everyone was getting ready for bed- Juliana was getting ready to go out.

She had even asked all the girls' opinions on her clothes- trying to find the right outfit.

Eventually she settled on a dark red, short number- with a dark blue ribbon around the waist.

It made her best features stand out as the others had told her. And it did. She curled her hair and she put on a tad of blush and she grabbed her matching purse.

She was ready.

She heard Victor's voice. Always the same thing- every night.

She crept out of her room and the same way Amber would, closed the door and crept down the hall in her heels.

She got into Nina and Amber's room and showed them.

"You look amazing." Nina smiled as Juliana twirled around, showing the different angles.

"Jerome is going to have such a great time with you. I wish I was sneaking around with Mick…"

Here we go again.

"Well- it's nothing. This is your big night." Amber summed up.

"Thanks. I'll see you in the morning."

Juliana went to the door.

"Juliana, come tell us everything the second you get in. We'll be up." Nina told her, smiling now.

Juliana, deciding to say something about romances in the spur of the moment replied, "Well, Amber- maybe you will soon get your date with Mick. And Nina- make a move on Fabian already. He's too scared to make one. Trust me. I've been his friend for years. I know him inside and out."

"Uh…I don't know what you're talking about." Nina denied.

Juliana just laughed and left, not making a sound. She looked towards Victor's office. It was empty.

Her heart started to race, but she ignored it.

She crept down the stairs and ran down the hall to Jerome and Alfie's room.

"Jerome." She knocked softly. "Open up."

The door creaked open and Jerome ushered Juliana in, and then shut the door.

The room was mostly dark- except for the glow of the television.

"Uh…"

"Alfie's all of a sudden really into sci-fi movies. Don't ask."

"Okay…well bye Alfie." Juliana waved in the dark.

He seemed not to hear a word they were saying.

"Let's go." Jerome told Juliana and they left.

As soon as they were outside in the porch light- they really noticed eachother.

"Wow." Jerome looked at her. "You look…beautiful."

"Thanks Jerome. You too. Look good I mean." They then realized just how nervous they both were.

He wore his red and white striped shirt-with the vest over it. The shirt she told him was her favorite on him. He wore it.

They walked around the gardens for a bit, and then Jerome checked the time and pulled her towards the road.

There was a limo.

"Late-dinner and a movie?"

"It's a good thing I didn't eat at dinner then." She laughed and they climbed in.

They went to a pizza parlor. They skipped out on the movie though- afraid someone would notice how long they'd been gone- especially when they were on house arrest.

Once back at school- they decided to walk a bit more before calling it quits.

Juliana carried her light jacket in her arms as they passed the school buildings and houses.

She shivered though.

"Are you cold?" Jerome's eyes deep with concern.

"No. I'll put on my jacket." She did, but the wind blew fiercely and her teeth chattered.

Jerome looked at her and shrugged off his own jacket and draped it on Juliana's shoulders.

By then they had reached the front steps of their house.

"Thanks."

He was really sweet.

"They got up the stairs and Juliana said goodnight only for Jerome to stop her. He kissed her passionately and strongly.

The kiss lasted forever but it seemed like a second had passed. Juliana opened the front door and the both went inside.

She handed Jerome back his coat, even though she didn't want to. It seemed so much of him. She could breathe in that scent for hours.

"I had fun." Juliana told him. And then she kissed him again as she reached up a tiny bit to reach his lips.

Then, when they parted, she headed up the stairs and Jerome stood there, grinning the whole time after all- watching her go.

She smiled and giggled slightly. She waved to him which shocked him out of his daze.

"Goodnight Jillian." He thought silently as he waved back. She was gone.

He then swung his coat over his shoulder and walked back into his room.


	6. Deep Down Everything is a Mess

Of course, Juliana didn't go and tell everyone what happened.

But at breakfast- everyone was begging to know what had happened.

Juliana smiled and looked down at her food, and glanced up to see Jerome's eyes on her. She blushed and bowed back down her head.

"Okay. What was that about?" Amber asked Juliana on the way to class.

"What?" Juliana asked innocently.

"You know…breakfast…"

Juliana just sighed.

"He kissed you! Oh my god! He really kissed you!" Amber was jumping up and down with glee.

"Twice." Juliana gushed, giving in.

"So how was it?"

"Really…really good." Juliana admitted.

Nina and Patricia caught up.

"Jerome and Julie kissed!"

"They what?" Fabian and Alfie asked, catching up.

"It's nothing guys." Juliana glared at Amber.

"Are you kidding? This is huge!" Fabian exclaimed. "So how was your date?"

"And how would you know that?"

"You say you two kissed first of all- and I could hear you last night through the walls, getting ready to go with Jerome." Fabian admitted.

"You are such a little girl sometimes Fabes, I swear!" Juliana hit him on the arm gently.

"Okay- so enough with annoying her about the details. We're sneaking down tonight to get more elixir. Alfie and me."

Juliana smiled to him with a grateful smile.

And they talked more talk of Sibuna until they all went into class.

Later, they all saw Amber do a huge cheerleading skit- she was running against Mara now.

The two started verbally fighting and Juliana walked away- not wanting to watch. She heard Patricia and Jerome shout Mara's name; supporting her over Amber.

Then, Jerome was disgusted by Mara and Mick's affection towards eachother. He picked up a package Mick had dropped. He then put it in his bag and walked away.

In English, Jerome came in late winking as he talked about campaigning issues. And as soon as everyone walked outside- they knew what he meant.

There were pictures of Amber in her worse years- all over the lockers, doors, and walls.

Juliana walked out…she was the only one besides Amber who didn't laugh.

"I hate you Jerome!" Amber yelled through her tears as she pulled each one down.

Jerome just laughed.

"What is your problem? You think you're really funny don't you?" Mick challenged Jerome.

"At least I don't keep secrets." Jerome implied. Mara stood and watched, and the boys were about to start a riot when Juliana came in.

"Whoa! Guys stop it!" She wedged herself in between them and put her hands on Jerome's chest. "Just walk away Jerome. It's not worth it."

"Oh so now your on his side! That's just great Jules!"

"Mick! Stop!" she grabbed his wrist.

Too late. He punched Juliana in the stomach.

"Augh!" Was the sound Juliana made as her face contorted in pain and shocked with surprise.

"Mick! You meathead! Look what you did!" Jerome screamed. Mara knelt down beside Juliana, who was now laying on the ground, crying, inching away from Mick.

"Jules. I'm sorry." He reached toward her. Jerome stepped in front.

"Best to forget it never happened," Jerome glared.

"Fine." Mick left, steaming. "This isn't over Jerome!"

Jerome glared after him, until Mara had finally ran after him to calm him down.

Jerome sunk to the ground. "Are you alright Jillian?" He brushed the hair from her face.

"I'm fine. You were going in for the kill there. That was intense." She joked.

Jerome smiled and helped her up. "C'mon. I'm sure Mick will get his payments soon enough." And he took Juliana's stuff and they walked away.

Juliana felt much better now…

Mara and Mick were busy for the evening.

Mick was preparing a romantic evening, and he had asked Juliana what she thought of it. She had thought it was really sweet. She decided not to tell him about Jerome and their date the previous night, since it would upset him. It was definitely clear Mick and Jerome didn't really like eachother today.

But Juliana completely blanked about it, until Alfie and Fabian were in the cellar and Mick came by to get the food.

Nina averted the crisis and Juliana considered briefly telling them, but she figured it was unimportant. And then when the guys came up empty-handed, it was forgotten anyway.

Jerome came by Mara's room and interrupted her getting ready for her date with Mick.

"Oh sorry Jerome. I promised I would…why don't you watch it with Juliana? Or we can watch it tomorrow?" Mara suggested.

"Yeah…great." Jerome muttered as she pushed past him on her way out.

Saddened, he walked back to his room, pulling down the Mara poster as he went, and he saw Mick preparing the dinner.

He smiled and ran upstairs.

Juliana saw him dart past her, and the next time she saw him was when she stepped out of the kitchen when his attempt to ruin Mick and Mara's date failed.

"Jerome? Are you alright?"

"Do you remember your very first day?" he asked suddenly.

"Yeah. I was so scared. My parents were just leaving me here. The whole ride here I thought they were leaving me here forever…and then I met you." She smiled. "You were so kind that day…"

"I'm sorry I was mean to Mick today. You can tell me about how I'm a terrible person for being a jerk to your cousin."

Juliana eyed him curiously, then pulled him into his room and as he shut the door behind them, she sat down on Jerome's bed and patted the space next to her- gesturing for him to sit.

"Thing is…my parents left me here for a different reason. They left me here to rot. They wanted to get rid of me. I guess I did rot." Jerome opened up to her, finally.

"No Jerome. You didn't. You are the…funniest, sweetest…nicest, cutest friend I could ever ask for. Don't you ever say that you're not worth anything and that you're bad. Everyone does bad things from time to time."

"Thanks Jillian." he smiled weakly.

Juliana tilted her head and she weakly smiled back and hugged him tightly.

"I'm here."

"I know you are. You never left." Jerome breathed in the scent of her hair. Strawberries. It was the scent of his mother. He jerked away.

Juliana seemed surprised, and then she saw Jerome's eyes filled with tears and he was shaking.

She took his hands in hers.

She didn't speak a word. She just looked at him.

She kissed his cheek. Sometimes no words spoke louder than actual words themselves.

"Jillian. I've been meaning to show you this."

He got up and took out the manila envelope for Mick he had found.

He showed Juliana the contents.

"He didn't get in. He lied." She said, quickly shuffling through the papers.

"And I have something else to ask…"

"Jerome?"

He kissed her suddenly and she dropped the papers. She then closed her eyes and kissed back.

They parted. "Will you be my girl?" Jerome asked her.

"You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this moment Jerome. Yes." They smiled and they kissed again.

This time though- it was much more forceful and passionate.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and he had his hands on her waist.

Then she unbuckled her hands from each the other hand and her hands ran through his golden hair. And on went the kissing- much longer than any previous ones- longer than the one Mick and Mara had on stage.

Then Mick and Mara walked in.


	7. And So It Begins

"What on earth are you doing?" Mara gasped.

"Get. Away. From. Her Jerome. Right. Now." Mick said through gritted teeth.

"No."

It wasn't Jerome who said it. It was Juliana.

She inched closer into Jerome's side, and his arm was around her- he looked smug.

"I swear Jules. Get away from him or I'll-"

"Do what? Tell Daddy on me? I don't care. You can call your dear uncle. But he has no control over me here."

"I don't want you to get hurt. Please get away before I do something I'll really regret." Mick pleaded.

"Make me."

Jerome smiled inwardly. Juliana was so brave and sassy right now.

Mick's face was curved downward and he shook his arm like he wanted to punch or strangle something. "Fine. You win." He scowled at Jerome. "Tell your little boyfriend that this isn't over. C'mon Mara- let's go." And they left to go make the campaign muffins.

"You didn't have to do that." Jerome turned to face her.

"I know him. He was going for the kill. Only way I could stop him was only way I know how. Put myself in the center. He'd never do anything to intentionally hurt me." Juliana looked up at him. "I wasn't about to let you get hurt." She made a small smile.

They were about to kiss again and then Victor burst into the room. "Out! It's 10 o'clock! You have five minutes. Go. Go. Go!" And Juliana scurried out, with one last glance towards her boyfriend and she ran upstairs.

Boyfriend. She could definitely get used to that.

The next morning, Jerome sat in the living area, with his feet up on the table and he was reading a book.

Nina and Fabian walked over and found something of Sara's.

Juliana walked in the double doors right behind them.

"Hey! Jul…" They were about to show her the shawl that Sara must've left behind- meaning she had been here. But she passed them and went over to kiss Jerome hello. She then crossed over his legs and plumped down on the couch next to him.

He adjusted so his arm was around her and he still could read.

She lay her head on his shoulder and smiled up to Nina and Fabian. "Hey guys!"

They looked at eachother and then everyone else came in.

"Oh. No. Way. Photo op!" And Amber took her pink bedazzled phone and clicked a shot of Jerome and Juliana. "Why didn't you tell me you two were going out?" Amber pouted. The whole poster dilemma the day before had been forgotten.

Victor shouted from the other room, "Put your feet down! And tonight everyone is to be in bed at 9 o'clock."

Jerome jumped and put his feet down. Juliana looked at her watch.

"Oh god! Jerome- we'll be late!" she whined and they got up, grabbed their stuff and ran out the door, all of their friends following closely behind.

"He kept a secret from you!" Jerome yelled at Mara as Juliana walked into class with Amber.

Then everything shifted in a second, Jerome got mad at Mara and basically told her to go and make-out with Mick while he did all the work. He then went to Amber's side.

Juliana stood and watched.

"Well- why don't you make-out with your girlfriend?" Mara shot back.

Jerome slowly jerked around his head and looked at her.

"I will. Thanks Mara." He flashed a smile and ran over to Juliana who was talking with Nina and Fabian about Sara's death and he spun her around and kissed her.

"Ooohhhh." The class giggled.

Mrs. Andrews came in. "Now Mr. Clarke. I understand you enjoy chemistry and family 101 but this- is English. Sit down."

Jerome nodded and everyone got into their seats.

Mara was stung by that display of affection.

At elections, Mara got up to give her speech. At first she was quiet.

"Speak up mumbles!" Jerome shouted. And Juliana smacked him playfully, in which he responded to just wrapping his arms around her from behind and kissing her hair resting his head on top of hers. She just laughed in response.

Mick listened to every word Mara said, but he couldn't stop from glaring at Juliana and Jerome. Was he the only one who found them disgusting?

When everyone was voting, Mick bribed the nerd to put Mara in the lead, which Jerome knew about. He then also bribed him.

Juliana came around the curtain just as he was straightening up.

"Hey you. What are you doing back here, all alone…oh…uh…you're not. Sorry." She hadn't seen the less-popular kid there.

"Nothing. Just saying hi. C'mon- let's go get one of Amber's delicious little finger foods shall we?"

"Why do I feel like you're hiding something from me, Jerome Clarke." She shook her head and they went off.

As they unveiled the new school representative, all three candidates got nervous. Then they found out it was Mara who had won.

Jerome immediately glared to the nerd and muttered something unintelligible.

"Jerome. It's okay." Juliana laughed. She pointed to Amber- who stormed out of the room in a tyrant. "At least you weren't her." They laughed.

When the speech was over, there was a mini-celebration afterwards.

"Oh man! I just forgot! I'll be right back." Juliana whined and then whispered to Jerome before taking off.

Jerome looked at his nearly empty plastic cup. The drink was gone. He put it in the garbage and walked outside and leaned against his locker. He then started to pace around.

"Listen here Jerome. If you ever even think about hurting Jules." Mick slammed Jerome back against the lockers.

"Get a grip jockie. If you stopped being so stupid, maybe you'd realize it isn't Juliana I want to hurt. I know Alfie wanted to…but I'm pretty sure he's over it. What? Don't like us together?" Jerome snickered as he snuck out of Mick's clutches.

"I'm serious. Don't you dare. I'll find out what you're really up to."

Jerome just laughed, and then I'll tell everyone about how you promised your little nerd buddy that you'd hook him up with Patricia- or better yet- that you rigged the election."

Juliana came around the corner and Mara came out the doors.

"Hey. What's going on here?" they asked their boyfriends.

"Just a little friendly discussion." Jerome told them. "Right Mick?" He smirked.

"Yeah." Mick glared back.

"Well. I'm dying of thirst…And seeing how this is really quite bland- want to go to Starbucks?" Juliana asked Jerome, but she didn't give him much choice. She was pulling him along and taking out her phone to call a cab.

Mick and Mara stood there, astonished. "Since when has Juliana been a ditcher?" Mara asked.

"I don't know…but I feel like Jerome's up to something. He's going to hurt her. Watch."

"Mick. I'm sure that's not it. You worry too much about Julie. Relax. She's just having a little bit of fun with her new boyfriend." Mara convinced Mick- and she even managed to convince herself.

That night, after Victor had finished his mourning over Sara- he went downstairs to the cellar and put on his golden robe.

He did a chant and said something about "tipping the scales and showing signs…"

And then, anyone could see the scales with the names- Jerome, Mara, Juliana, Fabian, Nina, Victor, Amber, Alfie, Patricia, Mick and a few others.

And Jerome's scale tipped downward. Victor stared at the tipping scales- showing the signs…And he was extremely happy with the results. He knew soon that everyone would change. And he laughed manically.


	8. Knowlege is Power

"Ah Mara, just the girl I wanted to see."

Juliana crept down the stairs and heard her boyfriend's voice. Immediately, she became jealous. She looked back up the stairs and thought about how Nina was going to Sarah's funeral. Patricia and Alfie were fighting about Joy…And Juliana used that time to sneak out. She hid outside the door, listening to her friend and beau.

Jerome was telling Mara about how Mick cheated for her.

Juliana gasped and luckily they did not hear her. Her cousin bribed that Robbie kid! And that's why Jerome had been acting so strange!

Mara snapped at him and she took her stuff to head out. Juliana straightened up and used that time to make an entrance.

"Hey Babes." She skipped along to Jerome's side and kissed his cheek, putting her arm around him.

He was full of tension…but also he had an evil smirk on his face.

"Boo- what's wrong?" She asked him.

"Oh. Hey Jillian. No- nothing. C'mon, let's get to class." He put his arm around her and they walked out.

While lounging after class, Jerome sat on the arm of the chair that Juliana sat in.

She was trying to get his attention to do their homework, but Mara and Mick's argument was to engrossing.

Jerome laughed, Juliana stared on.

"Shut your mouth Clark." Mick told him gravely.

"I knew it!" Amber exclaimed over Juliana-

"Mick! Do not talk to him like that!"

Amber left, consumed by anger but soon returned and vented her frustrations to the now nearly empty room- besides Mick, Mara, Jerome, Juliana and a few others.

Then Mara got up and left "to do the right thing."

Only to find out soon after, Mara really had won.

But that didn't stop Mick from getting in trouble with Patricia.

Jerome burst into laughter and this time, Juliana didn't hold back.

"Sorry Mick," she laughed. 'It is funny."

And they chased after Mara, allowing her to keep her position…but not Mick. She left him and Mick watched her go.

"That's what I call a result." Jerome smiled in approval. This could be his chance!

"Mick." Juliana stepped toward him, one hand out to comfort him. He jerked away- as he did with Amber.

"Get lost will you!" He nearly screamed at them.

Amber stood there and then Juliana looked at her cousin longingly and sadly, then chased after the extremely pleased Jerome. She knew Mick would come to her soon enough.

"Ms. Martin. A word. My office." Victor said as Juliana and Jerome walked into the room.

Nina left and Juliana stared, her eyes saying, "Fill me in when Jerome's not here."

Jerome looked around. "And what is this?" he grinned.

Alfie immediately jumped up. "Nothing."

Jerome raised an eyebrow.

Juliana went in the kill.

"Oh Jerome, I've been dying to show you this amazing thing I got for you, c'mon!" She tugged him out, saving all the Sibuna members.

They let out a breath of relief when they heard Jerome say, "What _thing_?"

And then Jerome came back downstairs a few minutes later and walked into the dining room, Juliana frantically running after him.

"Oh- but I need to find it! Wait- please. Help me look…" She trailed off.

"What box? What ceremony?" Jerome asked, intrigued.

"Sorry." Juliana mouthed and looked ashamed as she hooked onto Jerome's arm, trying to gain his attention.

"None of your business!" Patricia snapped. Juliana wanted to roll her eyes at that. Way to give it away, she thought.

"Alfie?" Jerome asked.

Alfie started off slow and then started laughing, making up a story.

Jerome obviously didn't believe it as he swallowed, his eyes darkened and he looked on. Juliana stopped tugging on him to see Jerome's body language change dramatically…to an angry, unknown sort.

"Right. Keep your secrets. I could care less!" Jerome pulled Juliana along, out with him and Juliana glanced back to the group, looking upset.

After being filled in by the group, they all stood around in the kitchen, in the pajamas.

"Jerome won't suspect anything?"

The question directed towards Alfie and Juliana.

Juliana stepped up to plate. "Hopefully. I tried. I even got him off campus for a few hours. But if he comes in- just act like we're getting…a midnight snack. And then I'll get him out of there."

"So basically you're guarding?" Amber asked.

"I guess so. Like a plan B. But I'm still on plan A for right now." Juliana grinned.

"I'll stay up here." Patricia volunteered.

"Same." Juliana suddenly announced. "Better less go down, if you think about it…Also…how can I stop my boyfriend if I'm not here?"

"Sibuna." They all said in unison.

And they parted.

Juliana stood, waiting for Jerome to suddenly burst in.

After a half hour, she went to Jerome and Alfie's room to check on him.

He wasn't there.

She shut the door and her back to the door, her face showed horror.

She opened the door to Mick and Fabian's room, Mick was alone, she relaxed a twinge seeing the steady, familiar rise and fall of Mick's chest.

She quietly closed that door, and checked the rest of the rooms on the ground floor, and then darted upstairs only to run into Patricia.

"So?"

"I contacted Joy!" Patricia launched into a full report… "Hey Julie…what's wrong? You look tense."

"Jerome isn't anywhere on the ground floor. He can't be in the cellar, or else the others would tell us…he can't be in the attic- since he doesn't have the key or anything…he has to be here!"

"What if he went out?"

"He couldn't have…he'd have invited me along…My room!" Juliana spun around and darted down the corridor.

Patricia went to check her and Mara's room. No. Just smart Mara sleeping…She checked the bathroom…nope. She gave up and went to continue on her own job.

Juliana burst into her room. Nothing. Little did she know Jerome had just passed through…he knew something was up, seeing even his girlfriend's bed empty. Now he wasn't just annoyed at not knowing, he was angry, frustrated and also a little worried and scared- mostly for Jillian.


	9. Secrets and Whispers Are Never Good

They four got out of the basement, totally unaware Jerome was hiding in the laundry room, catching every word.

Juliana eventually went to bed, convinced he must have gone back to bed.

The next day, during lunch break- they all went over the puzzle pieces and then after checking the time, they all went back- and Nina went to go put the pieces behind the panel.

After class, Juliana waited for Jerome, but he simply smiled.

"I'll meet you out in a second Jillian. I just need to have a little chat with Alfie first."

Juliana eyed him curiously and walked away. Boys.

And then again later, in the lounge- Nina came in and said she was caught. Naturally, everyone rushed out- and no one saw Jerome copy Rufus' number into his phone.

They walked back in, and Jerome smoothed out his coat.

"Keep your little secrets." He had said.

And he left to make the call.

Juliana watched the cute, funny guy she called hers walk out and turned her head towards Sibuna.

"I feel so bad- keeping it from him."

"We have to-"

"I know. I know the rules- I never said I liked them. But it's for his safety and all of ours." Juliana brushed it off.

And when back at the house, Nina burst in with a bit of new information- only for Jerome to narrow his eyes, as they became quiet when he spoke. He would know soon enough. Poor, poor Alfie. Being the little messenger.

That night, Jerome snuck out to meet Rufus and even though he explained everything he knew, he seemed hesitant to bring his Jillian into it.

And he was handed the money and he whispered in awe, "Shopping splurge." He'd definitely get Jillian something special with that money.

And then, the next day- Jerome was with Alfie, and poor Alfie was all jittery and nervous- but no one really seemed to notice.

After picking straws to see who'd go down to the cellar that night, it was Alfie who had to.

Jerome and Alfie sat that night in their room, watching movies on the laptop.

"What's going on?" Jerome asked.

And Alfie tried to cover.

Leading Jerome to be even more suspicious and he turned on a movie.

"Great. I only saw it two days ago." Alfie muttered.

Everyone lay in their beds, sleeping.

After Jerome was seemingly asleep- so Alfie grabbed his things and left. Juliana burst into the room, just as Alfie was leaving.

"Everything's ready." And then she saw Jerome laying down, sleeping on his bed, still in the half- sitting position. She sighed. "He looks so peaceful, innocent…sweet and cute in his sleep."

Alfie just shook his head and then they closed the door.

Jerome's eyes flickered.

He grabbed the walkie-talkie Alfie had left behind and started to wander the halls.

Soon enough, Nina's voice rang out…then again- full of worry.

"Ok. Thanks." Jerome said quickly.

They obviously bought it.

"Alfie! Get out of there!" This time- Juliana.

Jerome's heart fluttered at the sound of her voice- but he continued. "Alright. I'm safe. In my room."

And then Jerome heard the creaking of stairs as they all went back.

This was just way too easy. Jerome completely blanked on his best friend's safety. He just grinned and after Victor went back upstairs and he heard Alfie get a snack, he turned and headed back towards his room as well.

He was going to make a lot of easy money and he'd get in on whatever his girlfriend, Alfie and everyone else seemed to be going on about. Only the broken couple- Mick and Mara seemed oblivious.


	10. And the Real Countdown Initiates

It seemed that Jerome was keeping Juliana in the dark. He was doing deals and keeping secrets…He was starting to avoid her now, not talking to her with the exception of the day he bought all those gifts.

Juliana had been at the initiation ceremony for Alfie and had run back to the house to get her chemistry lab when she saw Jerome standing in the hall, his back to her- with a million bags.

"Jerome? I never figured you for the shopping type…there is a little girl inside you- crying to come out isn't there?" Juliana smiled but Jerome didn't even react to her. "Jerome?" Her smile started to fade away. "Jerome?" Still no answer. "Jerome!" She ran around to his side and looked at him, square in the face. "Jerome? Why didn't you answer me!…Why do you look so frightened- like you've seen a ghost?" Juliana put her hand to hold up his chin so he'd look her straight in the face- but his deep blue eyes seemed far off, and distant. "Jerome. Please. You're scaring me." She was on the verge of tears and her voice broke.

_You're scaring me._

_You're scaring me._

_You're scaring me._

No! Jerome seemed to come back to life. Never. He would never, ever hurt Jillian in any way. He looked up into her face; he almost had.

"Jillian, look at me. Everything's alright." He dumped his phone in his bag and stroked her cheek, using his thumb to wipe away the tears. "C'mon, don't cry. Please- for me?"

Juliana didn't look at him.

"Juliana- look at me."

Her eyes widened, her eyes widened and the tears came to a crawl. He had never called her that. Not once. Well- he had, in the very beginning, but it had been years…

"I got you something." He smiled at her and pulled his arm away to reach into one of the bags and he pulled out a little case.

Juliana looked up at him and then at the little blue box and took it. She slowly opened it. Inside was the most beautiful necklace she had ever seen in her life! There was a nice blue sapphire in the center, surrounded by tiny little diamonds on a silver chain.

"Jerome! I love it! How did you…"

"I've…been saving…"

"I love it." She kissed his cheek and she put it on. And then she removed her hair trapped underneath the necklace and it spread out evenly over her shoulders.

Jerome looked at her.

"The sapphire matches your eyes."

Juliana blushed and looked down. "I have to get the chem. Lab- I'll see you back at class yeah?"

"Definitely. I have to put all these bags away anyhow."

And they went off.

Jerome was in huge trouble. He had been threatened by Rufus. Basically his life if he didn't deliver by tomorrow. But he could not worry Jillian. That was a close one. Thank God that jewelry threw her off. But it didn't throw off Alfie.

Alfie drew pictures for each of the puzzle pieces and Jerome took them and accidentally mentioned Rufus by name.

"Rufus Zeno! He's a nut job! He kidnapped Patricia!" Alfie reasoned, but Jerome refused to believe it.

"If I don't give these to him by tomorrow, I'll be in huge trouble." Jerome said, through gritted teeth when Alfie took the drawings back.

"I can't let you do this. Give the money back." But of course, that option was out. "Oh Jerome! You are in trouble man. I can't believe you didn't think this through! You only thought about yourself! Have you even thought about what could happen to you around him? Don't trust him! Bad enough if I lose my best friend, but what about Juliana? Have you even thought about how she would react if you got hurt? Isn't she important to you?"

Jerome had had it. "No. Don't say that Alfie." Only Alfie knew how to pull the strings on Jerome perfectly. "Give. It."

"No!" And Alfie ran out, and Jerome chased after him, only for Victor to take the drawings. Alfie, smug turned and walked out while Jerome groaned as he saw Mick and Mara get back together.

He trudged back to his room.

Speaking of Mick…when he had done his lame skit for Mara, Juliana watched and giggled. Of course, he had screamed at Amber for something about 'total humiliation,' and ran out. Juliana sighed and chased after him, and she hugged him as he relaxed.

"How is that Jules- that you don't say a word- but you say all the right ones anyway? Does that even make sense?" Juliana grinned and she patted him on the head, laughed silently and walked upstairs.

At dinner, everyone saw her necklace.

"Whoa- look at that rock!" Trudy exclaimed, coincidently right as Jerome had got up hastily and left.

"Oh…" Juliana touched the cold stone. "It's from Jerome…a gift." Alfie narrowed his eyes at that and he took off as well- finding Jerome.

"Take your stupid hat back! You need all the money you can get. You bought Juliana a necklace? Are you insane! You're getting closer and closer to her- and Rufus will just hurt you and shatter you and your "girl's" hearts. And why are you in here!"

"Looking for the elixir. Which isn't hear. You lied. You must not be my friend. Either you theirs and you're feeding me fake information, or your mine and they're the ones betraying you!"

"No Jerome. It's you who's betrayed us. All of us." Alfie shook his head sadly and left Mick and Fabian's room.

And with all the pieces in hand, they all were smiling.

And Juliana, like all the others were totally unaware of just how frightening and bad that this treasure hunt would turn out to be.


	11. Secrets, Secrets Are No Fun Please Share

**A scream filled the house. Amber. Juliana jumped up from the couch and started to head for the stairs when she heard another scream from the kitchen. Trudy.**

**She hurried down the stairs and ran into the room to see Trudy on the island counter and Alfie was as well- quivering with fear- while Jerome was using a pot to capture the furry white rodents. **

**A call from Mara and Mick proved more mice. Everywhere. Mice. Juliana smiled at Jerome. He was so brave. And what made it even the better was that he was hers. She grabbed a pot from Jerome and went to catch the mouse in the dining room. She touched her necklace and continued on.**

**At school, the teacher told the class that due to a mice infestation, the boarders at Anubis house would stay at school overnight. Mick put his hands in the air, obviously elated. Juliana stopped clacking her pen on her desk as she turned around in her seat to smile knowingly at Jerome. Then class resumed and Juliana went to chewing on the tip of the eraser on her pen. She looked through her notes, full of **_**J+J 4EVER, **_**throughout the margins of practically each page. She looked up and shut the binder as she saw Alfie trying to read what the words inside the hearts said. **

**Jerome was gone during lunch, and Juliana started to become worried. He had been missing lunch every day this week. But then she'd decide it was nothing, even though a wrinkle formed in her nose. She shrugged and went over to the Sibuna group. **

**That night, Nina and Fabian went to gather all the pieces while Alfie and Amber played potato-sack/sleeping bag race. **

**Jerome practically ordered Alfie over, and Amber frowned. "He's not a dog, you know." **

**Juliana looked to Amber and then to the boys. She shrugged once more, trying to stay out of it. **

**She did catch pieces of Jerome's and Alfie's conversation. "You do treat me like a dog…I thought you were my friend…No!" **

**And also, "When I tell you to jump, you jump and roll over."**

**Juliana snapped her head up at the sound of that voice.**

"**Jerome!" She gasped. She stood up. "Do not talk to him like that." **

**Jerome looked to Alfie, who was looking over Juliana's shoulder at Jerome, smug. **

"**Alright, I'm sorry Jillian." he kissed her hand.**

"**Tell it to Alfie." she was angry at him.**

**Jerome sighed, and he took a breath, but Alfie left- he didn't want to hear a fake apology. **

**When Fabian and Nina returned, they had the takeout…and the puzzle pieces. **

**The elixir was gone…and then the potential couple freaked out over the cylinders. **

**Jerome took a pizza, as did Mara and Mick and Alfie. **

**Jerome opened the box and called out, "Jillian? Fancy a bite?" **

**Juliana looked over towards him and humphed. She snapped her head away.**

"**Jill- I'm sorry…" Jerome tried for the hundredth time in the last hour. **

**Mick looked back and forth, he had warned him- and if Jules was hurting…but it seemed like it was the opposite. It did make Mick happy to see Jules giving him the silent treatment instead of Jerome, her. **

**He knew she'd forgive him in three…two….**

"**Alright." Juliana rolled her eyes with a smile and she trumped over to the couch and plumped down beside Jerome. "Fork it over. I can't stay mad at you."**

**Practically all the guys made a noise of disgust while the girls thought it was sweet. **

**Juliana settled into Jerome's shoulder and she talked and laughed, but he seemed a bit off. Scared somehow. Something was up- but she didn't know what. All she was hoping then was that he not be about to break up with her…or at the very least be cheating. But in reality, it was much, much more dire and life-staking. **

**The next day, everyone was allowed into their rooms again- but everything was destroyed.**

**Naturally, being her, Juliana put the mattress back on, redid the bed, organized and her room looked cleaner than before. When everyone else came in, they were shocked. Why weren't their rooms like this?**

**But they knew. Juliana- the neat freak was back. **

**At lunch, Sibuna split up the several ankh pieces- or as they knew them- just puzzle pieces. **

**But Jerome saw, and stole the one that Alfie had. He had to- was his excuse.**

**And he did. He was scared out of his mind. By tomorrow, if he didn't deliver…he'd be dead.**

**He may not have been keeping Alfie in the dark, but he made sure everyone else was. **

**He didn't know then, that tomorrow, when everything went bad- Alfie would finally open up to Juliana, and she'd know the ugly truth. **


	12. Trouble Arises

Juliana was oblivious to everything going on. She didn't know that Jerome had traded in one of the ankh pieces- the one he stole from Alfie.

And then besides that couple and their problems- was the issue of the prom- Amber, and Mick and Mara drama- which Juliana didn't feel like hearing 24/7 and also Nina and Fabian. Nina thought he liked Patricia now, and Fabian was just too scared to ask her out.

Juliana had run after Fabian- crossed her arms and stared with her intense heat.

Fabian looked up from trying to solve the puzzle. "Oh…hey Julie."

"What's wrong with you?" Juliana threw her hands in the air. She walked over to him. "She likes you so much- and now she thinks you hate her!"

"But it's the opposite of that."

"Then tell **her **that Fabes." Juliana stormed out, and Nina came in.

Fabian tried to ask her- following his friend's advice- but Nina took it the wrong way and she left.

And then more cruelty when Alfie asked Amber out to the prom and she turned him down; saying she'd keep him if she was desparate- and Juliana and Jerome were wide-eyed.

Jerome stopped eating for a second to laugh as he said, "Queen Amber of Cruelty!"

Juliana frowned at Alfie. Poor Alfie.

And then as for the missing piece. No one knew it was missing.

Until the Sibuna meeting when everyone put together their pieces- but Alfie turned up with nothing. He had been shocked himself when Jerome had come back empty-handed. As he put it- it was his life or the relic.

Alfie had been so freaked out, but he managed to shake his head in pure pity as Jerome had a look in his eye. It had been there for days- but only now it was noticeable- but no one did somehow.

Juliana wasn't at that meeting- yearbook club emergency meeting that lunch period. So she didn't know. Yet.

Alfie explained that Jerome had taken it…and given it to Rufus Zeno.

Everyone shouted then. "Alfie! How could you! I knew we couldn't trust him." Multiple voices.

And they all packed up, and went to confront Jerome.

"Spill sleazy pants." Patricia ordered.

Jerome glared at Alfie. "You told them!" he seethed.

"We're you're friends and you betrayed us!"

And Jerome wondered aloud, " Friends? None of you are my friends! Anyway…why should I?"

"Because then…we'll tell Juliana what you're up to." Nina piped up.

"You wouldn't." his face softened.

"Aw- what's wrong Jerome? Scared she'll dump you?" Patricia teased, and the others laughed.

"No!" Jerome abruptly stood up. "I'm afraid of her getting hurt." Everyone quieted.

"Oh." Patricia apologized.

"Oh- that's so sweet Jerome. Do you love her?" Amber questioned.

He didn't get to answer as Ms. Andrews came in and class started.

As soon as class was over, everyone corned Jerome again- and Jerome finally crumbled.

They had threatened him with the Juliana thing again.

They could picture it now. Juliana, with that angry, intense heated look on her face- in her eyes and her arms folded across her chest as she took slow, deliberate steps towards them. Sibuna would separate in half to see her pass and she'd look Jerome straight in the face and ask him to tell the truth before she lost her mind on him.

"Fine. What do I have to do?" Jerome's voice quavered.

Amber shrugged.

"Alfie?" Jerome raised an eyebrow.

Alfie shook with fear…and he didn't know along with that.

Nina piped up once more. "I have a plan."

"Well thank god someone does." Jerome looked throughout the crowd.

Jerome was on the phone and he was quaking with fear, he ran his hand through his hair as he spoke, his voice quavering. "I have all seven pieces…no meet me here…" And when it was done, everyone applauded the frightened-out-of-his-mind Jerome.

"And look, you didn't pee your pants." Patricia made light of the situation.

Jerome glared.

"I'm starting to sorta see why Ana likes you." Amber looked him up and down. "You're brave, and you really care about her. I can see that you'd do anything for her."

If only she knew how much.

That night, they went through with the plan.

Jerome let Rufus in at midnight and he got the ankh piece back…but the plan went off the railway when Rufus forced Jerome down into the cellar with him.

The Sibuna group- minus Juliana all rushed out of their hiding spaces- worried.

"Where's Jerome?" Alfie asked, tense.

"He went in with Rufus."

"That wasn't part of the plan!"

"So now what?"

"We can't lock him in with Rufus!"

Everyone spoke.

Fabian then spoke, "Let's go ahead with the plan. Nina- stay by the laundry room in case Jerome comes out- and then try to lock Rufus in. Amber, Patricia, Alfie- places!" And they all left.

Then, the door slammed, Amber spoke of how she was afraid someone broke in, and Victor unlocked the basement door and went downstairs.

Jerome tried to back away, and leave- but Rufus saw- and held him captive.

Jerome was quaking with fear now. He shut his eyes as Rufus held him- so he wasn't seen behind the wall.

When Victor came down, and Rufus appeared, thanking him for the elixir drink- Jerome used that time to escape.

Just as Nina was about to lock the door, Jerome grabbed her arm and climbed out. Then, when she went to close it once again, Rufus came out, and grabbed her- causing her to scream.

Jerome rushed to her side and fought to help save her.

All the while, Juliana stirred in her bed…hearing the scream she shot up in bed.


	13. Nightmares Make You Quiver With Fear

Alfie told Juliana the truth.

"Julie- he's going to see Rufus."

"When?" she asked frantically.

"Now!"

"Let's go!" And they ran to that meeting place where Jerome always met Rufus.

They got there too late.

"Jerome!" they skidded to a halt in front of Rufus.

"You're too late." He cackled. And he stepped aside- behind him, on the ground- unmoving, lay Jerome.

"Jerome! No!" Juliana ran to him, and checked his pulse. "No- Jerome. Please don't leave me."

Alfie stood there.

Then he launched himself at Rufus in vengeance.

"Jerome…" Juliana cried. She stood up and her eyes went dark. "You took him away from me!" And she ran at Rufus, ready to claw his eyes out.

Juliana awoke panting. A dream. Just a dream. Some would call it a sign or a vision though.

She got up to hear Victor's voice echo, "Get to bed. ALL OF YOU."

Juliana put on her robe and climbed down the stairs; hearing whispers.

She reached the kitchen and met with Jerome, Nina, Fabian and Alfie.

Together, they all explained what Juliana had missed the past 24 hours.

What they left out was Jerome's threats. But she found out anyway.

She heard him talking to her about a deal they made- that he'd help them- and they'd keep him safe from Rufus.

Was her dream important? Juliana felt dizzy. No. Jerome. He wasn't in danger. He couldn't be. But the signs were all there. How he was avoiding her, keeping secrets, how he had a look in his eyes- how scared he was- how every kiss felt like their last…he was afraid of losing his life.

Juliana didn't confront him about it anyway. She wanted to be a good girlfriend and not trouble him with those manners.

But she became increasingly jealous when Nina called out to Jerome and latched onto his arm.

Juliana appeared behind them. She only knew the basics of it- she didn't know really what was up with Sibuna and Jerome these days. "Ahem." She crossed her arms.

"Oh- hey Ana." Nina smiled.

Juliana opened her eyes, and raised her eyebrows. "Anything I should know?" she looked back and forth.

"No." the pair said too quickly.

"Mm-hmm." And she sauntered away.

The day was a complete and utter failure- the only thing that made it better was when she came into the living room and sat next to Jerome, eating a peach.

Then, in one instant- Mick flew over the couch beside her and crashed to the floor.

Jerome busted out in laughter and so did Juliana.

"Sorry Mick. Try to avoid furniture." She giggled.

Suddenly, Alfie came down and whispered in Jerome's ear.

Jerome's eyes widened and so did a smile across his face. "Yes!" he exclaimed. He passed his half-eaten apple to Mick and ran upstairs.

Juliana sat, and shrugged- too engrossed in her cousin's dance lessons to care. Her whole life she had tried to get Mick to dance. She wasn't missing out on this.

Suddenly, there was an earthquake- just after Jerome entered the Sibuna group.

"It's not the right time!" Jerome explained what Rufus had told him earlier.

"Jerome?" Juliana said tense, as the house shook. "Jerome?" She ran up the stairs- making small progress as she climbed them through the quivering mass.

She managed to get into the door just as it stopped.

"What's going on here?" she wondered aloud.


	14. Prom Night

"Jerome. I'm sorry to tell you this- but I'm not interested. I mean I can't be with you- even if I liked you. What about Juliana? You can't break up with her and you especially can't cheat on her!"

"You think I like you? You think I'm asking you to prom?" Jerome asked, a grin forming. He burst out laughing. And he kept at it.

"What's so funny?" Juliana walked though the kitchen doorway to the dining room.

"Amber thought I was asking her…to the prom!" Jerome stood up and stumbled over to Juliana- laughing his head off.

"Amber! You know I'm with him!" Juliana smiled slightly.

"I did not ask him!" she ran out. Juliana stared after. Was she getting desperate? Earlier she thought it was Fabian who was King Tut. But he liked Nina- so that didn't make sense.

Juliana was glad to finally be caught up on everything. After walking on the group- they explained everything. Juliana had just stared, glancing at everyone- tears welling in her eyes as she stared at Jerome the longest.

"You didn't tell me?" Her voice was hoarse. She turned and rushed out.

"Jillian! Wait!" Jerome ran through the door after her and he reached her. "Hey. C'mon Jillian. I'm fine. We're fine. Rufus can't hurt us." but he wasn't so sure himself.

"I'm so worried about you…and you've been keeping this from me for so long. How could you?" Juliana cried, not looking at him.

"Hey. Hey." He grabbed the sides of her face, making her look at him. "Nothing is going to happen. I promise." And he kissed her head.

"Alright." She wiped away the tears. And they were cool again.

But as Jerome was walking to class- Rufus caught him alone and threatened him- a final threat. And he gave Jerome the deadline for the elixir and ankh pieces.

So- Jerome went and tried to steal Nina's stuff. But he was caught and the whole Sibuna gang gathered to his sentence.

All except Juliana.

And Jerome explained how he'd be dead- literally- for sure by tomorrow if he didn't deliver. "Don't tell Jill." He pleaded.

The group looked around.

"Fine. We forgive you…but we don't trust you." Nina summed up for them.

The girls' were all getting dressed for the prom- and they pulled out their second-best dresses- since they were going in their best.

Amber was upset she didn't have a dress and she didn't want to wear the girls dresses. She decided she wasn't going at all- and everyone else got ready.

Nina, Mara, and Patricia came downstairs and Mick and Fabian gaped at their dates. They all waited now. Jerome and Alfie were finishing up, and suddenly, Alfie came by, and ran upstairs.

Minutes later, Amber came down the stairs- dressed in her blue dress- just as Jerome appeared. She frowned. "I'm so mad at you." she directed at him. Then she took Alfie by the hand and they gathered with the others.

That's when Amber said, "Go!" And she grinned expectantly.

Juliana stepped out of the shadows and descended the stairs- in an amazing dark blue short satin dress.

"Wow." the boys breathed.

They clapped even harder than they had for Amber.

She reached Jerome's side. "Do you like?' she fluttered her eyebrows.

"I love." He kissed her hand and slipped on the corsage.

Then, Mick and Mara walked out, arm in arm- followed by the new couple- Alfie and Amber- then Fabian and Nina- and then Jerome and Juliana. Patricia followed them out.

Everything went according to plan- until they got into Rufus' trap.

Rufus held up a jar of deadly bugs- threatening to set them loose unless they do what he say.

The Sibuna group looked around at eachother. At least Mick and Mara were safe- and so were the pieces and Joy.

"What about us though?" Patricia hissed at Nina.

Patricia's phone buzzed.

Rufus took it and looked at it. "Missed call from Joy…Call her back." He shoved the phone into Patricia's hands.

"But…"

"Do as I say…" he waved around the jar. "I'm getting angry- and so are they."

"Do it." Amber wailed, pressing herself into Alfie's arms.

Jerome held Juliana close and she breathed into his tux. They waited and shut their eyes. Juliana opened hers in time to see Rufus chuck Patricia's phone at the wall.

"Oh and thank you Jerome for telling me all about where Joy would be…" Rufus smirked evilly.

"I didn't! I didn't betray you guys, I swear. I didn't!" Jerome burst out, screaming- coming closer to Rufus as he yelled, he started to turn red.

Juliana held onto his arm- scared. She'd never seen him like this. Angry. So much hate. She'd seen him weak- especially about his parents- she'd seen him happy- she'd seen him lie…but never angry.

How were they going to get out?

Then Rufus ordered everyone to sit.

"You're coming with me." He grabbed Nina's arm and then several things happened in slow motion.


	15. Tipping the Scales

**Author's Note- Hey- so this is the end sadly- unless I come up with more or the series continues. I'd like to thank everyone who read, reviewed, favorited the story or me as an author. It has been fun to write this one- and it's my most popular story. Well- I'd love if more people read it- so please show to friends and people on fan fiction . So please do! And also feel free to check out my other stories! Enjoy!**

"**LET HER GO!" Fabian roared and jumped across the tables. **

**Rufus let Nina go, and then it was an all-out war. Alfie suddenly had the jar and then everyone ran out and Jerome took the jar and threw it, making it crash to the floor and he shut the door.**

"**It was him or us."**

"**Think about what he told us though." Nina panted, as she leaned against Fabian, who was stroking her hair. "One of us is going to die."**

"**Let's go then!" Jerome ordered and he pulled Juliana along with him as they ran back to the house. **

**Juliana thought about what had just happened. One moment, she was sitting next to Jerome, the next- they were escaping. **

**Then, as Nina built the Cup of Ankh- they all watched. And when they were done, Rufus appeared.**

"**The bad guy always comes back!" Alfie moaned. **

"**Give it to me- and the elixir. Or I kill the pretty girl." He grabbed Amber. Nina and Fabian handed the stuff over and Rufus drank it- just as Victor came downstairs. **

"**No more. Sorry Victor. And look- one of these pathetic kids will die soon."**

"**We were going to share!" Victor boomed.**

"**No. I had discovered the true meaning of the tipping scales. And I could do so much more than your little society ever could." **

**Then, Alfie sunk to the floor.**

**He got up a second later. "Joking." **

**But then there was a choking sound from next to Juliana.**

"**Jerome?" **

**Jerome gasped. "The room is spinning wildly. Jillian- where are you?" His hand slipped from hers and he crashed into the table and he fell to the ground. **

"**Jerome!" everyone gasped and screamed as the adults watched. One laughing.**

"**Once he dies- I'll live forever." Rufus cackled and Victor asked aloud, **

"**What's happening?" **

"**Jerome. Please. Please stay. I'll do anything, please." **

**Jerome looked around, his eyes wheeling- looking for something. **

**Alfie, and the others looked up from Jerome to Rufus. "This is all your fault!" they howled.**

**Juliana was too fixated on Jerome. She held his hand. "I'm right here Jerome. It's me- Jillian. C'mon Jerome please. You can't. I need you." She cried and he looked at her. **

"**Jillian." he smiled weakly. He wiped away the tears. "I'll be fine. We'll be fine…I promise." **

**So many broken promises. **

**He then closed his eyes and they did not reopen. **

**Rufus was now bursting with joy. In a minute- he'd have gained all of Jerome's life force. **

"**No. No. No. Jerome. Jerome. Jerome!" She shook him violently, but his breathing slowed and then stopped altogether. **

**It became quiet.**

"**No. Doesn't he know how much I love him? Why is this happening? Why did we have to be the ankhlites? I love you Jerome. Please. I'm so in love with you. Can't you hear me? Jerome Clarke- you wake up this instant…" She trailed off, she was suddenly overwhelmed by grief. And she cried. She felt the sapphire necklace indenting her skin. She took one look at it and started to wail. **

**Then, Alfie and Fabian launched themselves at Rufus. They were going to try to kill this man- even if it meant their lives too. So- then Nina and Amber followed their boyfriends and then even Patricia got into it. **

**Joy and Victor were last and when Juliana looked up, Rufus was gone. In his place- was a pile of dust…and the victorious fighters.**

"**How did you…" **

"**I don't know."**

"**What happens if Jerome doesn't wake up. I never got to tell him how much I love him. I've loved him since I first met him. I hated when he flirted with other girls. I loved when he first kissed me on the porch…I loved when he opened up to me…I loved his personality…why did he have to do this?" **

"**He loved you that's why." Joy answered quietly.**

"**Joy." Juliana really noticed her for the first time that night. **

"**He must've really loved you."**

"**I know he did. He told us. That one day…" the girls smiled when he told them of how he was trying to protect her because he loved her. **

"**He did?"**

"**Yeah. He did." **

**Juliana looked back to Jerome. She held her necklace in one hand. "I wish I could just tell him how I feel." She smiled weakly. **

**And then his eyes flickered. **

"**Jillian? Alfie? Amber? Fabian?" He stirred.**

"**Jerome!" Julian threw herself at him. "I love you." She kissed him- as if it were their last. **

"**I love you too Jillian. You never forget that." **

"**I know." Juliana smiled. She stood up and helped her boyfriend to his feet and he brushed himself off. **

**And they went upstairs to head back to the dance. Nina hid the ankh- so no one would ever find it. And she and Fabian were pronounced prom king and queen. A slow song came on and the couples all danced. And finally- Nina and Fabian kissed. **

**Jerome looked at Juliana. "God- you're so beautiful." he looked into her eyes.**

"**How is it that all this could happen?" she wondered.**

"**I don't know. But- we're all alive. And our lives are just beginning. Together."**

"**I love you so much Jerome. Don't ever scare me like that again."**

"**Not even with a prank?"**

"**Not even that." **

**Everything was going to be fine. Perfect from now on.**

**Joy walked by as the song ended and a fast one came on.**

"**You all have a lot to tell me." she smiled- as she looked at Jerome and knowingly at Juliana. And then somewhat regretfully toward Fabian and Nina. "Good to be finally back. I'm not the chosen one after all."**

"**Oh believe me Joy- we will tell you everything. But you have to tell us what's up with you too- I'm sure Patricia's dying to know." And Patricia came over and pulled Joy away- going to share their stories since they'd been apart. **

**And then, that song ended as well- and then- all the couples gravitated and then kissed.**

**Mick and Mara. Nina and Fabian. Amber and Alfie. Jerome and Juliana. **

**Mystery solved. Seemingly. **


	16. Back Again

Juliana stepped out of the car and looked up at the school. She took in a deep breath, and smiled widely. A new term, a new start- hopefully, no mystery would be around to put her friends in danger- especially her boyfriend Jerome. He'd almost died last term, and it was all Rufus Zeno's fault. She learned he was dead though from a call with Fabian a couple of days ago, so it was alright now. Zeno had learned the hard way he wasn't immortal, and well, he deserved it for almost killing her and the other ankhlites. Plus, Joy was back! Ah Joy. She had been the one before Nina came who had tried the hardest to get Jerome and her together. The whole gang was back together.

Juliana lugged her suitcases up to Anubis house and into her room, and then heard voices by the stairs.

She literally dropped everything and sprinted down the stairs, her floral sundress giving off the appearance of being very floaty and light. She reached her cousin first.

"Jules!" he spun her around as she held on with a tight embrace around his neck.

"Hey Mick." She smiled.

"Off traveling again over break huh?" he nudged her.

She nodded. "Mum, Dad and I went to Rio. Oh my gosh Mick, you should've came when Daddy offered you! It was so beautiful!"

"I wanted to work on my sports." He shrugged as if it explained everything, and for Juliana, knowing Mick her whole life, rolled her eyes, but accepted it.

"Julie! Hey." Patricia and Joy hugged her. Then Mara, and then Amber, as if waiting for the spotlight, held out her arms and grinning welcomingly said, "Ana! How are you darling? Has Jerome been treating you well? Have you done something with your hair?"

And it was true. Her hair was curled, and also longer. It made her look more mature, but then again, with that dress, she looked like the regular old, neat, smart, adorable friend the house members had come to know and love. Then she heard Jerome in the living room, probably wreaking havoc with Alfie as usual, so without a word, she burst through the doors, and without noticing Fabian and Nina standing there awkwardly, she cried out her boyfriend's name, and just as he began to smile, she practically threw herself on top of him, wrapping her arms around him, and kissing him passionately hello. He responded as enthusiastically, dropping the food he'd picked up from the tray in front of him. In fact, they did not stop until Alfie and Fabian both smirked and cleared their throats, saying people were eating there, turning Jerome's joke on him.

Jerome narrowed his eyes at them, but Juliana blushed, and so he turned to her and asked, "So Jillian, how was your vacation?"

"It was perfect Jerome…I just wish you would've come with me." She pouted, as if to tell him that she missed him so much she couldn't stand it.

"Aw Jillian, maybe next time. C'mon- let's go unpack and then we'll come back to join everyone else here for lunch!" then he pulled her upstairs and they got to work on putting all her pictures and posters and things back in their rightful place.

At lunch, Nina announced that her grandma was coming, and how excited she was to meet all of her grandchild's friends. Normally, Juliana would've commented how on cute that was, and how to impress the old woman, but she was too busy picking up finger foods and feeding them to Jerome, smiling as his lips and tongue enveloped her fingers, and Jerome was looking at her like she was the center of his universe while he accepted the food. Mick looked disgusted and turned away, still not comfortable with his cousin dating that manipulative mess.

Then Jerome's phone rang, and Mick picked it up and looked at the caller ID and said the name aloud with disdain. Jerome snapped out of the love trance with his girlfriend and snapped the phone away from Mick. Jillian looked puzzedly at Jerome while he slouched down and read the message.

She thought they were past all of this, the lies, secrets…

That night, she, Nina, Patricia, and Amber snuck upstairs to the attic for a welcome back Sibuna party. Fabian and Alfie joined them soon after, and they just getting started, the food out on the sheet and everything, when they heard something on the steps. They froze and held their breaths, but it wasn't Victor or another adult of murderer coming for them- it was Joy, followed by Mara, Mick…and Jerome.

"I can't believe you're having a midnight Anubis party, and you didn't invite us." Joy frowned.

The Sibuna club looked around at each other nervously, and then all joined in on Patricia's idea of a surprise party.

Joy, Mick, and Mara seemed doubtful but bought it well enough, but Jerome, being a member of the club, just not having come upstairs got a look on his face that seemed like he was either trying not to cry or laugh, and Juliana looked only at him, paying no attention to the other intruders. Jerome settled down across from Juliana, and he picked up an apple, as if examining it, and Juliana bit her lip and looked down. Was this his way of ignoring her? Not sitting beside her, and giving more thought to an apple?

Amber went to grab another sheet only to uncover an exact replica of Anubis house, a dollhouse.

She brought it over to the others, dropping the heavy thing on Alfie's foot in the process, making him squeak in pain.

"I always wanted a dollhouse." Amber said dreamily as she tilted her head, looking at the object beside her.

"Even one that's a replica of Anubis house?" Fabian asked, making everyone incline their heads to look with wonder at the dollhouse. Then Alfie cracked a joke that made everyone laugh, but everyone grew serious and anxious as Victor discovered them and waited for them to come down. Jerome was first to get up and head for the door. Juliana had just stood up in the time it took for him to disappear from her sight. She looked on at the door for a moment, looking hurt, then shook it off to help Sibuna put everything back as it was.

"Go to bed immediately." Victor ordered. "I shall deal with your punishment in the morning."

Juliana tried to head for the stairs to follow Jerome to talk to him about him seemingly ignoring her, when Victor spotted her and boomed, "Juliana Claremont. Go. To. Bed."

"But-" she started, but she already knew it hopeless. She went back to her for bed. She just hoped Jerome didn't hate her because she hadn't told him about the Sibuna party.

...

Hey guys! I promised I'd be back, and so I am! Oh gosh, a year...so much changes I bet we've all gone through huh? For instance, you'll notice I'm a much better writer than I was this time last year, and it's because of you guys! The people who read, alert, and fav my stories, because without an audience, a writer is nothing, so thank you.

Now,

REVIEW!

ALERT!

FAV!

(if you haven't already)

I would like to say welcome to any readers I'll gain this year, and a huge welcome back to my readers who have come back for this new year!

Enjoy!


	17. Crazy Cupcakes

At breakfast the next morning, Juliana immediately went to her chair beside Jerome's and they talked about the previous night. He hadn't been angry; in fact, he didn't even realize he was ignoring her. Juliana was just turning into an over-paranoid girlfriend, analyzing every move Jerome made. So she grinned, and they were perfect again by the time Amber and Alfie walked in, arguing about their relationship issues.

Jerome laughed, and Juliana did also, at how stupid the whole argument was for those two. Victor gave out their punishment, toothbrushes for them to clean the school's toilets with.

When Victor walked away, Jerome commented, "Well, he's definitely missed us." To break the silence.

Juliana smirked, and just touched up his hair, and asked him how he looked even more perfect than usual, and Jerome, being the charmer he was, asked, "I could ask you the same thing."

Mick and Mara almost gagged while the others all 'awwed'.

At school, Mick and Mara came up to Juliana and asked if Jerome and her wanted to go on a date in town to catch a movie with them and Fabian and Nina.

"For sure." Juliana agreed. The last time she'd had a date in the village with Jerome…was their first date…and he'd gone all out for that.

She walked into class to see Jerome taking his seat behind her, where he sat with Alfie, and taking off sunglasses, a hat…he was hiding from something, or rather who and Juliana wanted to know. She felt she had the right to know.

She took her seat beside Amber and Alfie, who in spite, made up a story about a poor boy who fell in love with a very picky princess who practically lied to the boy.

Juliana turned around at the same time Amber did, and she shared a look with Jerome, that explained in their wordless code that usually develops when you've known somebody for years, how irked she was at this 'Amfie' drama. But it was so entertaining as well, that it was hard not to laugh, much less smile. Jerome raised an eyebrow at her, smirking.

She bit the inside of her lip to keep from breaking out into a wide grin, and turned back around and rummaged through her stuff, and then pulled a small piece of a sheet of lined paper and scribbled 'M&M and F&N want to know if we can go to the movies later with them? 3-way date?' and then when Mrs. Andrews wasn't looking, passed it back to him. She waited a moment, and took down the notes on the board while she waited for Jerome's reply. She turned the next time the teacher's back was turned and he gave a sharp nod and then winked. Perfect. Then, of course, while they were in paradise, the people beside them were having trouble in it.

Amber gave Alfie her book to dating, and Jerome stared wide-eyed at how a guy would have to get Amber, and he thanked his lucky stars he loved Juliana, even if he was slightly crushing on Mara. Jillian was better after all, and he didn't want to hurt her, even though he'd done so, so many times.

Later, back at the house, Juliana had offered to help Alfie bake the cupcakes for Amber with Trudy, and while they were slaving over putting frosting on each cupcake, Alfie asked, "Ana, are things with Jerome not as great as you two make them to be? Because he's been acting really weird ever since we got back."

She immediately pulled up earlier when she, Nina, Fabian, Patricia, and Joy were looking at pictures for Fabian to put as his profile picture, when Jerome was walking around with a scarf, sunglasses, hat, and he was actually wearing the red school blazer- which Juliana thought would never happen, because other than that moment, she couldn't picture him wearing that blazer.

But she had to admit, he looked very attractive in it. But she turned her head away to look at the screen where Patricia pointed out Fabian's relationship status was still single, so she missed Poppy. Oh, it's interesting to wonder how she'd react to Poppy blackmailing her boyfriend, but she wasn't aware Poppy was there, much less that she existed.

"No…" she said cautiously, back in the kitchen. Then she froze. "Why, have you two been talking about me?"

"Well, I asked him for advice on dating, because you two have been in love ever since before you two started officially dating, and I want to be as good as him; with him pulling you in, I want to pull in Amber." He explained.

Juliana laughed, and promised she'd give him the 411 on what goes on inside Amber's mind, after the finished the cupcakes. He agreed, and they continued working.

Later that night, after Alfie had given the cupcakes to Amber, and everyone was sleeping, Amber screamed, and Juliana rushed out from her room and sprinted down the hall with her old guitar ready to use as a weapon if necessary, but when she got in, it was just Trudy and Nina staring, open-mouthed at Amber, and she saw why. Amber had an allergic reaction to the cupcakes, and her face was so incredibly red with a rash or whatever it was.

Just then Fabian and Jerome burst into the room with respectively, their guitar and baseball bat, and then they looked around, asking where the intruder was, and they thought that it had been Nina and Juliana who had screamed.

The girls smiled and went up to their boyfriends, murmuring to them about how sweet they were, and how they were her hero, while Amber buried her face in her pillow to hide until the boys left.

Juliana wondered how it looked downstairs to the guys when they heard the scream. They must've shot out of bed, grabbed the nearest makeshift weapon, then met each other in the hall, but continued up the stairs until they burst into the room.

Finally, everyone went back to bed, and the next morning, Jerome finally saw why Amber had screamed.

"Amber, you look like a balloon animal!"

Juliana smacked him hard on the arm, and he winced, looking at her death glare. Just as he was about to speak, Amber screeched again, as she sat on a cactus. So much for Jerome helping Alfie buy flowers.

Juliana spoke, her eyes narrowed, "While it's great you can be so brutally honest, you just keep sabatoging your best friend!" she threw her hands up in the air and stomped out, shouting obscenities and mutterings about Jerome and his stupidity as she went.

Jerome started after her, but Fabian stopped him.

"I'll talk to her. You'll just make it worse." Jerome opened his mouth to object, but he shut it when he knew Jillian would always open up to Fabian, because she saw him as her best guy friend, and she would want a guy's insight on this one- so no Patricia, or Joy, or Nina, or Mara would be coming to comfort her.

Even Mick couldn't go. Juliana wouldn't listen to him whenever he brought up Jerome, knowing how well those two got on.

So Fabian chased after Juliana, and she poured out all her frustrations to him, then kicked a rock with her shoe, asked why Jerome is the way he is, then ripped off the off-red school blazer everyone wore and threw it to the ground in her frustration.

"I don't know Ana. Jerome is just a joker, you know that."

"But he keeps doing this, stepping all over everyone to get what he wants." She was kicking her jacket around now.

"Not you."

Juliana stopped moving, and looked up from the ground to him, then realizing what was going on for the first time in the half hour he had been trying to reason with her.

"Oh god. Fabes! You shouldn't be with me, go find Nina, now! I'll go find Jerome at the school and talk to him. Go!" and the pushed him off towards the main school building, and hesitantly, he left. She reached down and picked up her wrinkled, dirt-covered jacket now, and half-heartedly tried to brush off the and dust.

Then she sighed, shoved the clothing item into her bag, and continued to the school.

She went looking for Jerome, calling for him, trying to apologize, until out of nowhere, in the theater room, he seemed to pop up. They were in front of a closet, and Jerome guided her away from it, as if there something or someone he didn't want her to see.

...

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	18. Sister Meets Girlfriend

Nina's grandmother finally arrived, and when Victor rushed in, yelling, as usual, he stopped, seeing the guest, and left. Of course, the old woman, leaned in and said, "You never told me Victor was cute!"

Jerome and Juliana started laughing hysterically and they couldn't control it, so they muffled it as best they could until it stopped, but it was the kind of statement that made their day. Mick and Mara came over, and Jerome and Juliana cleaned their mouths with their napkins, got up from their chairs and went over to the couple. "Are you sure you don't want to come?" Mick and Mara asked Fabian and Nina, but Nina shook her head and jerked her head in the direction of her grandmother.

They shrugged, and left.

At class, Mick, Mara, and Juliana were walking in, Mick in the middle of the girls, as they chatted animatedly, but they paused when they noticed Jerome picking up pictures from all the tables.

Juliana wondered what they were, but she knew she could get him to show her later, when no one was there.

So she watched until Jerome sat down, then she joined him in her seat beside him. Suddenly, a terrorizing thought ran through her mind. What if one day, someone took her place? What if she got to class, and someone else was sitting beside Jerome? Besides her and Alfie…She pushed it from her mind. It did no good to think of that, he liked her, and only her…right?

Jerome, as he always did, waited for Juliana after class, and they were walking to their next class, when they heard it. Laughter, and a crowd. They edged closer, and then saw it. A crowd of students were standing in front of a poster…a poster of Jerome…in a dress.

Juliana did a double take, to make sure she was seeing it right. She saw a girl, maybe in the 8th grade or so, handing out more photos, and she immediately saw the resemblance as Jerome went forward to rip down the poster and yell at the girl. She was Jerome's younger sister.

She was thinking of why he hadn't told anyone she existed, when Patricia spoke it aloud, reading her mind.

"Because I prefer to think she doesn't exist." Snarled Jerome at the laughing Patricia. Juliana looked around, seeing every single person laughing, including the Anubis boarders, but she wasn't. She got angry instead. She went up to the girl, Poppy, which made sense- from that call the other day from 'Poopy.'

"Just what do you think you're doing?" Juliana smiled fakely and tilted her head to the side.

"I'm getting back at my brother, not that it is any of your business," the girl mirrored Juliana's movement, swishing her blonde ponytail.

"Actually, Jerome is my business. I watch him, and take care of him, and help him, and understand him- not that you do that."

Jerome went to interrupt, but Poppy held her hand up to silence him, not breaking her narrow eyed glare at Juliana.

"Oh really? And what exactly would someone like you be of use to my brother?"

Juliana didn't even look fazed as she said, her grin getting bigger, "Aw sweetie, he's my boyfriend. Not that a little girl like you would understand."

Maybe she was supposed to be nice to the boyfriend's little siblings, but Jerome sure didn't seem to care, and she was too angry to let her blackmail go unchecked.

"You're…you're his girlfriend?" Poppy now looked to her brother for a moment, who was standing in front of them, looking up, like he'd rather these two never have met.

"I'm Juliana."

"Oh…Jillian…Jerome used to talk about you all the time, years ago." Poppy said so with a smile, as if recalling happier times between the siblings, but now she had to hand her brother over to a girl she'd never met until today, and because of that, the girls glared at each other for a moment longer, then spun on their heels, and walked away from each other, leaving Jerome standing in the middle, until he realized, and went running after Juliana to catch up.

"Jillian! Wait up!"

He grabbed onto her arm and she spun around on him, her azure eyes glistening, full of accusations and disbelief.

"I can't believe you. I thought we promised to not lie to each other anymore. I agreed not to push about your parents, but you could have mentioned you weren't an only child!" Juliana exclaimed.

"We did Jillian, but talking about Poppy means talking about our parents, and I just…I didn't want you and her meeting, because it would cause this."

Juliana sighed. "I…I need to go. See you later." She then jerked out of his grip, and sprinted down the hall, away from him, leaving him to sigh and mentally kick himself.

The next morning, Mara went to see Mick, but he didn't want to see her and went for a run. Mara, looking hurt, told the person who knew Mick best, his cousin.

"Julie- do you know why Mick is so distant?"

"No, why? Want me to chase after him?" Juliana rose from her seat, eager to leave the table before Jerome came in for breakfast.

But, he already came in; laughing with Alfie, then the laughter subsided when he laid eyes on his Jillian.

She averted his stare, and stood up. "I'm going to class early- need to ask Sweed about something, want to come?" she asked Mara.

"Um…sure." Mara looked at Jerome as she spoke, then followed after her friend.

"Okay, what's going on between you and Jerome? You have more tension in a room right now, then Nina and Joy do."

Juliana told her the story, and Mara listened.

"Ok…but Julie…talk to him. I'll talk to Poppy when I have a chance."

"Thanks Mara. I'll talk to him. And Mick. I promise. Now we better get to the school, or Andrews will lecture us."

They smiled and headed off towards the main building.

...

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	19. Locker Slam!

In biology class, even though Juliana sat at the same table as Jerome and the other Anubis board members, she was texting him. She wasn't actually going to speak to him in the middle of class, so she held her phone under the table and texted her apology. He accepted, then apologized back, and they ended up just texting for the heck of it, when Victor walked in. He was talking about volunteers, and Joy and Fabian volunteered. Nina missed her chance. Juliana would have grimaced, but she was too busy smiling as she read Jerome's latest message. She glanced up at him and mouthed that she loved him, which he mirrored, then they bent their heads down again.

Back at the house, Jerome was paying more attention to a game on his phone then his girlfriend. Mara, sitting on a nearby couch, got fed up and grabbed the phone away. Jerome protested but Juliana looked to Mara and nodded, to say thanks. But, Jerome got up, grabbed back the game, and resumed playing. Juliana took that as her cue to leave and go find Mick, and make good on the other half of her promise.

But it didn't require much effort. He was in his room, on the phone with his dad.

"Dad, okay, I got to go. No, Jules just walked in. Alright, I'll call you back later." He closed the phone and looked to his cousin.

"Jules, what's up?"

"Why are you so moody?" Juliana folded her arms over her chest and waited expectantly, trying the daring approach first rather then they anxious one.

"Mum and Dad want to move to Australia, Dad's getting relocated, but I'm not leaving here. Home is here. "

"Do they know yet?" she raised an eyebrow, but inside she wanted to widen her eyes in surprise.

"No, but they will. I'm going to see them tomorrow, because we have no classes."

"Great. I'll come too. To say goodbye to my aunt and uncle." She perked up, and left the room.

So, they went and did so the next day. It felt good to reacquaint herself with her family, because her family had become Jerome. And it felt sometimes like they only had each other, even though the rest of the house was there for them.

When they got back, Juliana learned Mara had joined Poppy's side, thinking Jerome was the bully, and Juliana jumped to Jerome's defense, saying she started it. Great, now Mara and Juliana were pitted against each other.

But it didn't last long, because when Poppy approached Jerome in school about her photos missing, he said they were on his laptop, and he'd give them back later. He had asked why she even wanted those pictures of him anyway, and she had replied that they reminded her of happier times, like her recital, when their parents bailed, but Jerome showed up. Juliana, who had been walking beside him, smiled knowingly at him as Poppy left, and he asked her why she was grinning like that.

"You act like you don't care Jerome, but you do. She's your little sister, and you love her. You hide that you would do anything for her, even wear a stupid dress."

"I'd choose you over her." Jerome said quickly.

She shook her head. "I'm not saying that. But you really shouldn't hide who you are Jerome. Poppy just wants the brother who supported her and practically raised her, the guy who taught her everything to knows, the one who cares, to come back. And not in just brief flashes like right there, but permanently, and quite frankly, I'd like that too."

"Jillian-" began Jerome before she cut him off.

"No. Jerome, make an effort, or a promise, a lie that you will, or I'm going to Poppy, we'll finish settling our disagreements, and we'll look at all your baby pictures together." Juliana threatened. Well, that's how she got into Sibuna, like Jerome, by being devious.

"Fine. I promise. Now can we get a move on? Give me your bag, I'll carry it for you." He was already being a gentleman.

Juliana smirked and willingly handed it over.

Patricia ran into Juliana a few periods later and hurriedly told her in panic about Mara's plan to get Mick to dump her.

Juliana shrugged. She'd talk to Mara maybe, but no way was she telling her cousin. That would cause unnecessary problems.

So Juliana walked away, and as she was doing so, she rounded a corner, saw Jerome pull his sister's hair and Poppy yelled at him as she dropped the plague she was hanging up.

Juliana clacked her tongue in disapproval at her boyfriend. She knew it, she knew his promise would last all of five minutes.

So she went over to Poppy and helped her put the plague back up.

"I'm sorry about your brother. He can be a real thick-headed twit sometimes." Juliana offered.

"Well, you're the one who gets to kiss him. I sure don't envy you." The girls laughed as they straightened the hanging.

"Let's start over…maybe even plan something against Jerome in the process." Juliana offered her hand.

"For real?" Poppy looked up at the older blonde girl who nodded. So Poppy took her hand and agreed. Then she spied a name on the plague…her father's name.

"Oh, I have to go- there's Joy. We'll talk later, yeah?" Juliana didn't receive a reply though, as Poppy called over Mr. Sweet to examine the plague.

When Nina's grandmother went to leave, the only thing she said to Juliana was, "Keep a level head girl. You're practically the anchor of them all in here. Especially that young boy." The old woman examined Juliana more closely. "Don't let him go. You two are perfect for each other, you balance the other out. Take care, it was nice to meet you."

"You too." Juliana stepped back, smiling.

Maybe the old woman had some wise insight into relationships…and Juliana's heart soared with the great things she had just heard. Some people just knew how to make others feel better, Nina's grandmother was one of them, and now she could understand why Nina turned out so well.

Mara was still trying to get Mick to break up with her, and after she went through with a silly appearance change and acting like her boyfriend's own personal cheerleader, Juliana had had enough. She pulled Mara aside who was crying about she never should have let Patricia talk her into trying to get Mick to break up with her to go to Australia, because now it was actually happening.

"Ok, first of all, you did this by yourself, not Patricia; she tried to talk you _out _of it, and I'm sure he won't break up with you. He's nuts about you Mara!"

"Oh shut up Julie, just because you have Jerome playing into your games every minute, and your fights last all of two seconds, doesn't mean other couples are as perfect!"

"Perfect?" repeated Juliana with shock and a tinge of hurt, her voice raised an octave. "It was Jerome who almost-" she broke off. Mara had no idea what had happened in the cellar last term, and Juliana wasn't about to tell her. She and Mick weren't in Sibuna, which Juliana liked. Her cousin would be safe as long as he and his girlfriend were out of it. And her family, as it was the entire house, she wanted to protect, but it she could choose only some, she'd pick Jerome and Mick-one was her whole world, the other her real relative, they were good as siblings, but he never treated her like Jerome did Poppy.

"Just because you'll have Mick for life, no matter what, doesn't mean you can go around rubbing it in other people's faces." Mara snapped.

"But, I didn't say anything- I'm just trying-" Now Juliana was letting her hurt show through the holes.

"Juliana, STOP!" Mara yelled, which caused Patricia and Joy to come running.

"Girls, what's going on here?"

"Nothing." Juliana said too quickly, breaking her level gaze with Mara, and turned to wipe the slightest of saltwater tears out of the corners of her eyes.

"Mara?" they turned to the one crying openly. 'Wimp,' Juliana thought. She knew if Mara could read her mind, she'd be thinking, 'hypocrite.'

"Juliana is right, nothing is wrong." Mara said gingerly, then walked forward, purposely knocking into an off guard Juliana with much force as she went past, which sent Juliana crashing into a locker.

"Oof!" Juliana sounded as her body went into contact with the metal locker doors. She turned around, looking as if she on the verge of breaking into sobs, to see Mara disappear around the corner, and stared steadfast at her as she went, blinking the tears back that were blurring her vision. Her arms and front would ache later, from being pushed into the lockers.

"Ana, what happened?" the others asked.

"I told you, nothing happened." Juliana said, now looking at the two girls.

"We'll go get Mick, or Fabian, or Alfie…or Jerome. They'll get it out of you, and get Mara to stop."

"I said I can handle it!" shouted Juliana, and she grabbed her bag off the ground swiftly. "No one is to tell Mick anything, and no one will tell Jerome especially. Mara and I will make-up soon enough, just as we always do." Juliana was tired of playing the offensive, demanding, uptight side. She wasn't doing this again. She snatched a book Patricia had picked up for her out her hands, and threw it in her book bag with everything else. "I'll see you guys later." Then she picked her head up, and walked away.

...

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	20. In the End You Can't Save Your Loved One

"Juliana! Wait up!" Juliana thought it would be Patricia and Amber, but when she stopped and turned lazily to snap what at them, it wasn't them, it was Poppy.

"Poppy, now isn't a good time." Said Juliana tiredly.

"Did that gerbil break up with you? Why I'm going to-" Juliana grabbed Poppy's arm and pulled her back.

"No, we didn't break up. Jerome has nothing to do with this." She managed a weak smile.

Poppy eyed her for a moment, then decided to let it go, and launched into a story about how she found John Clarke, her father went to school there in 1978, with Sweet, and stayed in Anubis house. She then said she was going to find him.

"I'll help you if you need some Pops. What about Jerome?"

"I told him, he pretended he knew, then said I was on my own. He says he remembers how evil our parents were, and that I shouldn't go looking for Dad."

"You don't remember your parents?"

Poppy shook her head. "Not really. It's always been Jerome in the picture as the parental figure. I mean, as soon as we were able to go to school, we've been in boarding schools."

Juliana's heart tugged at the story. The things she didn't know about her own boyfriend's past.

Later, to help Amber and Alfie out, Juliana and Jerome agreed to go on the date too, with Fabian and Nina also joining. Juliana guessed Amber thought Alfie, Nina, and Fabian could get an idea to how a real relationship worked, with the kisses, the laughs…no acting like just friends, or being over prepared. Effortless, timeless. Juliana looked at Nina as Amber did her hair as they talked about the thing about best friend's and boyfriends, then looked back to the mirror, fixing her hair, making sure the curled ends were perfect, and making sure her make-up was perfect as she said, "You know Nina, Jerome and I were good friends for years, but we liked each other enough to make a relationship work. It also helps I don't go to him for everything like I would you two." She straightened up and turned. "There's pull and push. You can't both do the same thing, you both have to be yourself, but be together too. It's like time management. Does that make sense?" Juliana paused.

Nina laughed nervously. "Not really."

"Oh…well…you've seen Jerome and me, before and after we started dating…Fabian and you haven't really changed gears at all. Moral of the story." She smiled brightly, just glad Amber was focusing on Nina, not Juliana and her drama.

Meanwhile, downstairs on the grass, where the boys had set up the picnic, they were waiting, talking about the buddy bench, and while Alfie and Fabian looked worried as the subject came up, Jerome just laughed, confident. "Guys, the thing is to be like Jill and me, or like…Mick and Mara. Be romantic, and be more boyfriend-like, not friend-like…Fabian." Jerome rolled his head around to raise an eyebrow at him.

He gulped. Just then, the girls came out, Amber whining about Alfie not matching, which she shouldn't have done, because Alfie got the 'ride' which jammed and ruined the whole picnic.

"Jillian, get back," Jerome warned as the vehicle rolled over the food and into the trees.

Fabian and Nina used that time to escape, and Alfie then crashed and burned.

"Yeah…Jerome…do you want to ditch?" Juliana whispered to him. He nodded and took her hand.

They ran off too, leaving Amber to shriek at them how everyone was helpless, and that 'she'd tell.'

Juliana called her out on her bluff and chose to ignore her.

Jerome and her kept running, and they stopped by a tree and sat down in its shade, getting a breath. They lay down side by side, their hands intertwined in the space between them. Through the tree branches, they looked up at the sky, looking at figures the clouds made; however distorted they were because of the blocked vision due to the tree. But they liked the shade, so they didn't move.

"Jerome…this is the tree." Juliana realized after a few minutes.

It seemed like just yesterday she'd found Jerome sitting under the tree and they had almost kissed…until Alfie ruined it.

"Yeah. It is." He smiled upwards, not looking at her.

"Jerome?" she asked softly after another couple of minutes.

"Jillian?" he asked, his eyebrows knitting together.

"You do love me, right?"

"Of course Jill. I'd give my life for you."

"Ugh, don't bring that up. But…I've been wanting to talk to you about it ever since we got back. On prom night…you almost died…you have to promise me you won't do anything to put yourself in that situation ever again. I was so scared…and I've had nightmares. They keep coming back. And I know everyone thinks you're cruel and a joker, and a double-crosser, but I'm in love with you, so, so much. And the thought of losing you…"

Jerome turned his head to her, then shifted to pull his girlfriend to him. She went willingly, and settled her head on his chest, her hand still intertwined with his, and she looked at them, her eyes sparkling, with content and sadness. He wrapped his free arm around her, as a sort of support, and smoothed her cornsilk hair, brushing it out of her face, then leaned his head in, and kissed the top of her head.

"You'll never lose me. Alright? Nothing could pull me away from you. I'd never hurt you like that."

She didn't answer. She just closed her eyes, smiled and snuggled deeper into his embrace and almost fell asleep to the steady beat of his heart. The one that belonged to her.

Of course, that night, those nightmares reappeared again. It was always the same in the end. Sometimes, it was Jerome commiting suicide, sometimes being killed by some outside force, and all the while, Juliana would sprint at him to get him to stop, screaming, but he would pay no attention, and get farther and farther as she tred to get closer and closer. Other times, she was stuck behind an invisible wall, shrieking at him at the top of her lungs, banging on the wall to try to get through the obstacle, but he couldn't hear her...Everytime, she woke up crying and hugging her pillow furiously. But that night was different.

She was hitting the invisible barrier like usual, while Jerome battled with something, and the othet Sibunas were fighting or their lives too...but Juliana couldn't get to them. Then, a strange woman in blackness came up, and touched Juliana's forehead softly.

"You should have just let him go. Now, you're going to put him in a life-threatening situation. And if you don't get me what I want, I'll make sure everyone I touch dies. Not just the chosen one." then she laughed and disappeared. Juliana fell forward and the barrier was gone. She sprinted towards Jerome, only when she got there, she saw him laying there, Nina...or what seemed to be Nina stood on top, cackling, just as that woman just had moments before...Nina stood over Jerome, and the evil laughter made Juliana scream and wake up.

Nina ran in the bedroom and flicked on the light.

"Julie, what's wrong!" she asked anxiously.

Juliana just looked at her wide-eyed.

The next morning at breakfast, Juliana walked downstairs and got to her seat, making sure to cover the mark of Anubis she now had with her blazer, and besides Mara ignoring her, and Patricia and Amber looking like they were waiting for a bomb to go off, it was normal. Joy walked in and started going on about how they needed to impress blah for the exhibition and blah. Juliana yawned, until Jerome got up and went up behind Joy, mocking her, making her giggle. He shoved what seemed to be Fabian's poem for Nina in Joy's clipboard,stood by Joy who said "that means you too Jerome," who replied all too happily "of course," handing her the clipboard, then went to stand by Alfie by the counter. Jerome and Alfie laughed, which made Juliana narrow her eyes at them, suspicious.

Amber wanted to reschedule a date for Fabina, but when they announced they had broken up, Juliana looked to Joy and Patricia wide-eyed, knowing what they were thinking, until Jerome's laugh brought her back to what was happening on the other end of the table. He was so cruel sometimes. Mick was rubbing Fabian's shoulder in comfort, while Amber moaned how it was her fault. Jerome nodded as she said it, his hand over his heart, as if he was being sincere. Then, Amber snapped out of it, and blamed it all on Alfie, which pretty much shut down Amfie for good it seemed. They exited the room, and Jerome laughed even harder, making fun of Fabian and Nina breaking up. Juliana being fed up with his obnoxiousness, shoved her chair away from the table, stood, marched around the table, went up to Jerome and to silence him, pressed her lips against his. He immediately got quiet, but she pulled away too quickly for him, and then went back to her seat.

Jerome said something to Fabian, who called him a creep, and Juliana wanted to roll her eyes when she saw Jerome mouth to himself that he knew, then he grabbed onto Nina's shirt, and asked if she finally got to know the real Fabian Rutter and dumped him, and Juliana, feeling threatened by the closeness of proximity of the two got up and stood there awkwardly as Nina shoved her chair away, got up, wrenching her arm free of Jerome's grasp, and snapped that the feeling was mutual, then looked to Juliana as if to wonder why Juliana liked him so much, and said looking at her, "I wonder if Juliana has gotten to know the real Jerome Clarke." Then she left too.

Jerome gave off a crazy chuckle, then looked to Mick and Mara and wondered aloud when their breakup was going public. Mick looked confused when Mara asked if there was anything Mick wanted to tell her, so she got up and angrily breezed out of the room, Mick running after her. Jerome laughed even harder, grabbed a piece of bread, the sauntered out of the room.

"That boy certainly knows how to clear a room." Patricia said to Joy as Juliana went to follow after Jerome, shouting at him that he shouldn't seem so happy about Mick and Mara troubles, then paused to turn back to look at the only two remaining at the table to say annoyed, "Tell me about it." Then she resumed shouting at her boyfriend and she too was gone from breakfast.

"Can you imagine if you liked Jerome instead of Fabian, Joy? I think Juliana would beat you to a pulp."

"And if it were you? He has a nickname for you." Joy grinned.

"Trixie- makes sense, Patricia. Jillian is so random…only he and Juliana get it, and even then, they might not. They've always liked each other, even if I did like him, I'd never have been able to compete with her, even when she lived in another house on campus."

"Well…Mara may take that risk. If Mick and Mara break up, something tells me that she'll be going after him. He did ask her out that one time, right?" Joy inquired.

"Well…oh god. Joy! That must've been what Mara and Julie were fighting about yesterday. I thought it was Mick, because she's his cousin and all, and knows him well enough to know Mara's being a total…idiot. But what if it was because Mara threatened to steal Jerome? That's why Julie didn't say anything to Amber and me! Joy, don't you understand? This can't happen! Ever since Mick and Amber broke up, Jerome and Juliana have become the Alpha couple! They're perfect for each other! Mar's going to ruin it all! We have to stop her!"

Then she too left, leaving Joy to eat alone. It was like last term, except she wasn't away from school, she was actually there.

At the exhibition, Alfie chained himself to the railing on the upper level of the old library in a King Tut outfit to make a statement. He was so desperate for Amber; he wouldn't stop until he got her. Jerome and Juliana really were better off compared to their friends' relationships.

"Jerome, you're his best friend, why don't you go up and talk to him?" Juliana offered.

"He won't give in until Amber agrees to go out with him, Jillian. Me shouting and reasoning with him wouldn't do a thing."

He did have a good point there. Amber arrived, and she agreed to go out with him so Victor wouldn't get Alfie kicked out of the school, just when the man they were trying to impress walked in with Sweet. Amber covered Alfie with a giant rug or table cloth covered in dust, and Joy went up to give the opening speech when Mara was nowhere to be found.

In the middle of it, Juliana's phone vibrated in her pocket. She dug it out and read the text.

"SOS -Mick."

She put the phone back in her pocket, and leaned over to Jerome who was struggling not to yawn and whispered she had to go, pecked him on the cheek, then made her escape, not waiting for him to ask what had happened.

Juliana sprinted the whole way to Anubis house, and when she grabbed the door frame and used it to swing her into Mick and Fabian's room, panting, she saw Mick sitting on his bed, crying. She paused; catching her breath, then went to sit beside him.

He told her how Mara broke it off with him, because she didn't want to keep him from going to the sports academy in Australia. She had told him that they were opposites and didn't work together. Then she'd rushed out, as if she couldn't handle having to break up with him. Juliana could picture Mara leaving hastily, then leaning on the wall outside the room for support, while she wept.

Mick had been undecided about going to Australia, but now, he was going, because Mars had just broken up with him. While he called his dad to tell him he was going to use the tickets after all, Juliana stood a feet away, her arms crossed over her chest, watching him sadly. He hung up, and his face made her shift and move closer to hug him.

Mick was about to ask how she and Jerome could actually stay together all this time, but decided against it. For once, there was no Mara or Jerome. It was Juliana and Mick- family, and in the end, that's who they could rely on, no one else.

...

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	21. Like Brother and Sister

"Mick, we should get to the library. Jerome-" she broke off mid-sentence. How could she be so insensitive? She shouldn't bring up her relationship when her cousin's had just crumbled underneath him. "Everyone will wonder where I've gone." She amended.

Mick nodded. "We'd better get going." They stood up and walked together to the old library, the walk mostly silent, until Mick spoke and said, "Jules, do you want me to go?"

"Mick, if it's in your best interest, which it is, then yes. Mara did the right thing. She loves you, but she doesn't want to hold you back."

"You really think so?" asked Mick hopefully as they approached their destination.

"I'm sure of it." Juliana said positively, thinking about how torn Mara was over Mick these past few days.

They then entered into the building, and went immediately to Jerome who was closest to the door.

"You and Mara broke up?" Jerome asked Mick, to what to Juliana seemed a bit too happy. She narrowed her eyes at her boyfriend as he offered to talk to Mara for Mick, saying he and Mara were close. But how close, is what Juliana really wanted to know.

So later, when Jerome was talking to Mick, Juliana slipped into Mara's room and noiselessly walked over to the bed. Mara was crying, playing with the bracelet Mick had given her a while ago, looking depressed.

"Hey." Juliana started.

"Julie? What're you doing here?" Mara snapped her head up to look at Juliana.

"I'm not here to apologize, but I'm calling a truce for now, until Mick leaves."

Mara paused, and Juliana took that time to sit on the edge of the bed.

"Mick shouldn't see his two girls fighting when he's leaving so soon. It's unfair."

"Easy for you to say, you'll have him for life."

"Okay, yes, I will. He's as good as my brother, but Mara, why live in the future? Just stay in the now. It's healthier and happier that way. At least, mostly."

"Julie," Mara shook her head, "I want him to stay."

Juliana scooted closer. "But he can't. He'll come back sometime, eventually. I swear. He's told me a billion times how much he loves you."

"Funny, Jerome goes on about you all the time as well." Mara smiled.

"Really?"

"Yeah, he says he can't live without you, he loves you, he goes on about how perfect and beautiful you are…He thinks the world of you Julie."

Juliana took in a breath, then flashed a grin in Mara's direction. "Good to know. But honestly, Jerome and I are totally different from you and Mick. We would know, those two boys can't be any more different."

"Yeah." Agreed Mara thoughtfully, then the pair broke out into laughter. It wasn't friends again, but a truce.

The next morning at breakfast, Mick stood up and announced he was leaving for Australia for tomorrow, and Mara got up and ran out in tears. Juliana, standing with one of Jerome's arms around her, pulling her to him, as Mick said this, forced Jerome away, and went after Mara.

And Trudy was leaving too. Just a peachy way to start off a morning, isn't it?

At school, Juliana was with Mara, still talking, Juliana trying to comfort Mara, and also about how they wanted Jerome to help Poppy, when Jerome sauntered over.

Words were exchanged, and Mara left in a huff, just in time for Mick to walk up and demand to know what Jerome did.

"It's me who's getting slammed!" Jerome protested.

Juliana, sick and tired of all the bickering, walked in the opposite direction that Mara had gone, and Mick followed her, but not before Mick muttered that the sooner he left, the better.

"Jules!" Mick yelled over the thinning crowd as the people headed into their classes. "Jules!"

Juliana spun around when Mick caught her wrist.

"Jules, what's wrong?" Mick looked concerned.

"For one second, can everyone forget this stupid fighting? You're leaving tomorrow, and you and Jerome still haven't made your peace. You keep fighting and bickering, and it's driving me insane. My two boys can't even give up their disagreements just for a day. A day, and then they wouldn't have to deal with each other anymore!"

Mick listened quietly, waiting for Jules to run out of steam and when she did, he just took her hand, and led her to class, getting to English a few minutes after the bell rang for the period to begin.

"Mr. Campbell and Ms. Claremont, care to explain yourselves?"

Mrs. Andrews was probably expecting the overslept excuse or something, but Juliana spoke up hoarsely, "No ma'am. I mean, there's nothing to explain. We were late, there are no excuses for this. We're sorry."

"Ms. Claremont, have you been crying?" Mrs. Andrews peered at Juliana over her glasses and Mick stepped in.

"She walked into…into the door this morning. She was crying, it hurt that much." Mick whispered so softly only the teacher could hear.

"Alright, you both will not receive detention this time. Take your seats, hurry up."

Juliana nodded and went to sit beside Jerome, who as looking at her fixatedly, and when Mrs. Andrews was called down to Sweetie's office for a few minutes, Jerome wordlessly took her into his arms, all the had to do was lean back onto him, and rest. The way he stroked her face made her forget why she had been crying earlier, but she was glad for the early morning affection.

At Mick's goodbye party, everyone was taking pictures and having fun, and Juliana who had been in all the pictures took the camera from Patricia and made her go to the pictures, and took a few, then made Jerome and Mick take one alone.

After she looked at how well it came out, she grinned and said loudly, "Well, now then it will look like you two were great friends!"

Everyone laughed then, but Trudy interrupted the fun by saying Mick's taxi was there.

Everyone was silent then.

"I'll help you bring your things Mick." Struggled Juliana. He was actually leaving now.

"Thanks Jules." At the car, after he hugged Patricia and the others goodbye, he turned to his cousin and said, "We'll see each other over holiday break alright Jules?" he wiped a stray tear from Juliana's cheek with a finger and she just nodded, her mouth tight and her eyes had blurry vision, but when he hugged her, she opened her mouth and grit her teeth as she hugged him back. "We better. Take care Mick."

"You too Jules." They separated, and he was going, going, gone. Too late for Mara who was sprinting across the grounds to say goodbye. But when she saw the car round the corner, it hit her she'd lost him, until Mick came up and smiling said he knew she wouldn't let him go without a goodbye. They kissed, and finally sad goodbye. Juliana made a tight smile. She was glad the pair had gotten together, she'd always liked them more together than Amber and Mick.

When Juliana went back inside, she was sipping on a soda when Fabian saw it. The mark. It was a flash, a momentary glance, but it was enough. He grabbed her arm and she set the cup back on the table quickly before following him out. They went down to the cellar, and he turned around and almost yelled at her.

"You didn't say anything? Annie, this is life and death. You, Nina, and me…we're in deep trouble."

"Well, we're all in this together. My guess is slowly Isis will touch all of Sibuna. But please, don't let Jerome know, don't let Isis touch him. I can't lose him again, and not like this. I have to protect him." She proceeded to tell Fabian about her dream in where Isis had touched her and she begged Fabian to keep it a secret. "Fabes, please."

"What?" Nina came downstairs and saw the rolled up sleeve on Juliana's arm and gasped.

"No, not you too!" Amber was there and gasped too, but she didn't have the mark herself yet.

They went into the secret room off the basement and Amber pulled a book when no one was looking and ended up blind.

"And this is why Jerome will not be put at risk." Juliana pointed out as they took care of Amber.

Juliana went back upstairs only to be ambushed by Jerome moments later, and she jumped in fright, then realized who it was, and asked what was up.

"Poppy and I are hiring a private investigator to find our dad."

"Jerome! That's great! Who?"

"Whoever is cheapest." Jerome shrugged.

"See Jerome, I told you that you cared about your sister." Said Juliana smugly.

"Oh shut up." Jerome laughed.

"That I can do." She shrugged, and she ambushed him herself with a deep kiss.

...

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	22. Future Conquests

The next morning was an extravagant breakfast, as there was a new housemother, Vera, already. Amber entered with sunglasses on, and Fabian and Nina leading her. She tried to sit in her chair but missed and fell to the ground. Her excuse for her blindness was an allergic reaction to raspberries. She finally went and sat down, but everyone got nervous and tried to tell Amber to move, as some people of the table looked at Juliana on the opposite side of the table, directly across from Jerome and Amber. Juliana was fuming, even though she knew it was accidental.

Jerome was looking at Amber surprised, and he said, "Hello." Like she was too close for comfort, which she was.

Amber turned and touched Jerome's face and hair to recognize him and then she said, "What, so a girl can't sit on her friend's knee anymore?"

"Not when that friend is my boyfriend." Juliana stood up, acting possessive now.

Jerome found her jealousy amusing and cute, but Mara didn't. "Jealousy doesn't make a girl more tempting Julie. In fact, it makes her look desperate."

"Why you little-" Fabian lunged to grab Juliana around the waist to prevent her from pouncing at Mara, who sat at the other end of the table. It would be a huge mess, food flying, two girls fighting…Fabian did the right thing, but Juliana still wanted to escape to beat Mara to a pulp. The truce was over. Mick was gone.

Later, Juliana went with Jerome to get the news on what the P.I had gotten, only to be disappointed when they learned the P.I had found Jerome's mother, with whom Jerome lived with, and not Jerome's missing father. He handed him a bag of garbage and handed Jerome the bill.

"You could actually sell this necklace here. A sapphire is worth a thousand diamonds to me." The man examined Juliana's necklace.

"It isn't for sale sir." Juliana spoke loudly. "Jerome gave it to me."

"Ah, well, aren't you a pretty one…"

Jerome stepped in between them. "My girlfriend isn't for sale either. So I suggest you leave school grounds now, or I'm calling for a teacher." Juliana peered around from behind her personal bodyguard, wide-eyed with disgust and fear.

"Alright boy, I'm going, but you're going to pay me soon. Got it?" and then he was gone.

"So you live with your mum…how come I've never met her?"

"Like Poppy said, she bails on everything that has to do with her kids." He looked at Juliana's face and sighed, giving in. "But if during the break you want to come home with me, and meet her, it would be fine."

"EEE!" Juliana clapped her hands together. "This is going to be so exciting. I'll make sure she loves me!"

"It's not her I'm worried about." Said Jerome under his breath.

Later, Juliana came downstairs to ask Jerome a question about the French homework, only to walk in on Mara and Jerome. She was calling his name, Jerome reading a letter, looking up at Mara, visibly shaking, his eyes wide, and Julian immediately went into overdrive.

"Jerome, Jerome!" she rushed over to him, almost pushing over Mara in her haste. She sat down on the bed beside him and begged for him to tell her what was wrong.

The only way he responded was by grabbing onto her hand as an anchor as he still shook from the news in that letter.

"He's not a judge…he's a criminal." Jerome sounded, removing his other hand from his mouth.

Poppy then walked in, and not seeing Juliana, smiled, looking between Jerome and Mara and asked slyly, "Are you two an item now?"

"No!" the both of them said quickly, and the Poppy saw Juliana, who had uncomfortably looked down at lap, and realized her fatal mistake.

"Hey Jewel."

"Hi Pops." Drawled Juliana tiredly.

"Alright, bye Mara!" Jerome practically shoved her out of the room, but left Juliana alone on his bed, where she just lay on the UK flag styled coversheet.

"So what did the P.I say?" Poppy looked to her brother excitedly, only for Jerome to lie, looking very sad, as he told her it was the end of the line, and there's nothing else they could do.

Then he shooed her out too.

"Jerome, I get why you lied to her, but it wasn't right." Juliana lectured.

"I know, but I was protecting her. Our dad is an outlaw Jillian, how can I tell her that?"

"Jerome, just relax…And how are you going to pay off the debt? Do you want me to give you my necklace?"

"No…I appreciate you didn't want to give it up because I gave it to you. I'll figure something out."

Juliana caressed Jerome's face, and then he basically just smiled, and pulled her to the bed to make-out until they were needed for something else.

At breakfast the next morning, they were all eating when the new kid walked in. Eddie. An American.

"I can pull off an American accent." Juliana said, doing so pretty well.

"Well, you and her- two normal people so far. Unlike Yapper over there."

Patricia fumed at that.

"Nobody told me that English girls were so cute." Eddie said charmingly, obviously flirting with not only Juliana who sat beside him, but with all the girls, minus Patricia, at the table.

The guys looked worried, hurt, or disgusted as they saw through Eddie's act.

"Um, hey, new guy, the girl next to you- yeah, she's my girlfriend, stay away from her."

Juliana blushed at how now Jerome was being possessive. She shot Mara a smug look then mouthed to Jerome across the table that she loved him. Eddie eyed Juliana for a moment, like she was a challenge, then moved on for the time being, Jerome now wary of Eddie, and promised himself to not let Eddie be in a room alone with Juliana, and then he realized he was a hypocrite. He liked Mara, and he would be alone with her, so why should it be any different? But it was, and he finally realized what he would put Juliana through, but she never said anything because she didn't want to anger him. She was always either too passive, or too active.

Juliana didn't even bother with the donkey day stuff Jerome was doing, because she knew the reason behind it, but she didn't care. Mara did, but then again, that's why Jerome preferred her over Mara…right?

...

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	23. Love Is More Than Words

Donkey Day. Er…not the best of days for Juliana. It definitely brought out her motherly, defensive side though.

Juliana was going about her day as usual until the time came for Jerome to eat the creamed carrots. She was on the stage beside Jerome, who was quavering in his chair, with a towel around his neck, and Alfie trying to relax him by massaging him and criticizing Eddie. Juliana stood there, rolling her eyes and making a disgusted sound in the back of her throat at him, then she leaned closer to Jerome and told him, "You can do this Jer. You will show this new punk who Jerome Clarke is. We're all rooting for you. I'm rooting for you. But Jerome, please don't get hurt while doing this." She looked at him knowingly, referencing to what he'd said a minute before that the carrots were going to kill him.

"Jillian, trust me, there is no way I'm losing this bet."

"Jerome. I'll be your own personal cheerleader, I'm in love with you. Don't just do it for the money, because Mara going to steal it all and send it to an actual cause." At this Juliana grew irritated for a moment, then continued, "But do it for me."

"Because I love you." Jerome said, still looking at Eddie.

"That's right Jerome, because you love me. Focus. Focus." She gently took hold of his chin, and turned it so he'd look at her. "You'll be fine. And considering this will be too gross to do when your face is covered in orange goop," she leaned in, and kissed him hard, not caring that everyone not on stage was recording the scene and/or taking pictures. She finally pulled away. "I'll be on the side, if you need anything I'm here." Then she stood up, and strolled away, Jerome's hand slowly losing grip on hers as more and more distance came in between them, until finally, he was holding air.

After a few rounds, Eddie was calling out, "You sure you want to keep going Jerry? Another round to go, and no stopping until it's all gone." He was practically singing.

Jerome glared; his face covered in orange slime, and hesitated.

Alfie ran in front of the table, not being able to see Jerome in so much pain, as Jerome literally looked on the verge of throwing all those carrots back up. "Let me throw in the towel!" Alfie pleaded, and began to, but Jerome reached up and stopped him. "No." then he took another bite, and the next round began.

At the end of the last round, Jerome was a few bites away from winning, but he didn't think he could go any farther. Eddie was taunting him, Jerome looked extremely ill now, and Juliana was stepping closer and closer to him, cautiously and carefully, worried out of her mind. He had the bucket in front of him, trying not to put the contents in his stomach back in the container, but with a surge of desperation, he finished it, then collapsed onto the table, headfirst.

"Jerome!" Juliana cried and ran forward to him, but the others closer had already lifted him up, his eyes barely open, but he had enough energy to grab the money from Eddie, then he slumped down again.

"Can you guys take Jerome home? I have some..business to attend to." Juliana asked Mara and Alfie.

"Yeah, of course." Mara sounded, and they helped Jerome up, and left the lounge.

Amber, Patricia, Juliana, and Eddie remained, Eddie playing games on his phone, while the girls actually worked.

"You, you foul evil little brat!" Juliana dropped the rag she was using to wipe down the table and marched across the stage to Eddie.

"Ederson, you are a true git!"

"And you say it like it's a bad thing, sweetheart."

Juliana stiffened at the endearment. "Alright, one, don't call me that, two, it is."

"Aw, is carrot-face the only one allowed to give you nicknames."

She stepped closer intimidatingly, and with her arms crossed over her chest asked slowly, "What, did you say about my boyfriend?"

"He's a carrot-face. He's tougher than I thought Jill, I'll give you that much."

"You got him sick!" she shouted.

"He didn't have to do it." Eddie retorted.

"Well, he did. But you wouldn't get it, because you're brainless. But believe this Ederson," she got even closer, "If you ever hurt him again, in any way, even by touching a single hair on the top of his head, I'll make sure your days at this school are at an end."

"Ooh, I'm quaking in my shoes really. Why don't you go play wife back at the house with Jerry, huh? Unless…you want to stay here with me?" then he went back to his game.

Juliana stomped her foot in frustration and trudged out, fuming.

She got to the house to find Jerome laying down on his bed, his hand on his stomach, his face still orange, moaning and groaning, and strange gurgling sounds could be heard coming from Jerome's stomach.

She shut the door quietly behind her and whispered, "Hey champ. Feeling a bit better?"

He groaned, and turned his head to look at her. "No."

"Well, at least you're honest." She pointed out, and clambered over him to the wall against the bed and sat there, putting Jerome's head in her lap. "I'm not leaving you though."

"Jillian, I'll be puking all over the place, I don't really want you seeing me like that."

"Jerome, I don't care. You're sick, you need someone to take care of you. I'm available to fill that position."

He sighed and settled back into her lap

"And I haven't exactly gotten to tell you yet, but I'm so, so proud of you. And I know ever since what happened in the cellar I say this a lot, but I feel like I don't say it enough- I love you."

Jerome gave a half-hearted chuckle. "It's alright. I like it."

Then, Mara came in, and took the money for the donkeys, and said she hoped Jerome learned his lesson. "Mara, he's sick, can't you be sympathetic for one minute?" hissed Juliana, who was running her fingers through his hair.

"Can't you be independent for a minute?" mimicked Mara in the same tone.

"I am, but I will stay by my loved ones side until they're better."

Mar narrowed her eyes and started out but Jerome jerked suddenly and rolled up to lie on his side, his back facing Juliana and he sputtered out a need for a bucket, and fast.

Mara left, and as soon as the door closed…Jerome lost the carrots.

Juliana was there, and while he brought it all back up, she rubbed his back, talking him through it, wishing useless Mara would hurry with that bucket.

...

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	24. Jealous Envy

The day of the grand opening for the exhibition came along, and Juliana preferred to ignore the dream about Nina falling down the endless hole in the passage, and focus on the dance. She went to the library with everyone first, and got there to see Jerome standing there in a mummy's costume. She put a hand to her mouth to stifle her laugh, but as she got closer to him, she couldn't help but smile.

"Well, don't you look…handsome." Then she burst out into laughter.

"Haha Jillian. You're hilarious. But if anyone looks great tonight, it's you." He looked over her dress, and she blushed. She was about to reply, when everyone's attention were called to the front. From there on, Juliana blocked it all out, until she found herself at the dance, her arm on Jerome's.

"You sold us the same dress!"

"Jerome, give them back their money." Mara put her hands on her hips.

Juliana rolled her eyes. Mara knew Jerome needed the cash. And so what, it was the dress, but they wore it differently!

"Jerome, give them back their precious cash." Juliana said almost bored.

He reluctantly pulled it out of his jacket and the girls snatched their cash back. Juliana resisted the urge to make a face at them behind their backs as they left.

"Oh, you two are matching also! Alfie, you really should be taking notes from Jerome. I mean, they do everything perfectly without even trying! Oh Jerome-"

"Don't even think about it." Juliana shifted possessively.

"Don't worry Ana, he's all yours. But look at you! You're wearing the most gorgeous short, sparkly gold dress I've ever seen, and Jerome's mask matches, and your mask matches the red on his suit!" Amber sighed. "Come on Alfie. We have to go dance." Then she pulled him away, Alfie looking back, pleading with his eyes for help. Jerome laughed his unique, fantasic laugh that Juliana had fallen in love with years ago, and she joined in.

"I'm going to go talk to Trixie for a minute. She's by herself. I'll be back." Juliana let go, and walked away, turning back to seductively wave and smile at him as she went. Eddie and Alfie came over, and were looking at Patricia and Juliana as they spoke, which the girls did not let go unnoticed.

"What's it like? Julie? You and Jerome?"

"Well…he loves me, and I love him…and it's so effortless, because when you love someone, you don't even have to try to impress them."

"But you always try."

"Yes, and no, it's not because I'm scared of losing him, it's just what guys like. They like when the girl dresses up for them…Why? You like Eddie, don't you?"

"No! Course not, Juliana, you've lost your mind." Patricia denied.

"Patricia. I'm not Nina. And I'm not a blind bat, like guys are. I know you. You like him. Eddie is cute, but Patricia, he's a troublemaker, he's a player- or at least, he definitely comes off as so. But he has to have pluses, and I trust your judgment."

"Thanks Juliana. It's so much better to talk to you right now compared to Joy right now. All she talks about is Fabian, Fabian blah blah. I'd rather not think about it."

Then Eddie came over. "May I have this dance?"

"I'm not sure my boyfriend would enjoy that, since he's looking right at us, but feel free to ask Patricia." She then walked away, giving a knowing look to Patricia as she turned her back on them.

Jerome was looking at Patricia incredously, and Juliana went to stand beside him, and looked at Eddie and Patricia dancing, and said, "I know, Trixie dancing, right? Whatever, I think they're cute."

"Wait…did you see that?"

"Where?"

"Under that table…I'll be right back." He then pushed through the crowd and lifted the hem of the tablecloth of the table that Mara was sitting at, and Poppy.

Poppy and Mara hid the letter from Jerome, and seeing their desperation, Juliana followed Jerome and tried to turn his attention to her.

"Jerome, I love this song, dance with me, come on!" but he shook her off and demanded that Poppy go home with him, now. And they took off. Mara took off too, to grab the letter, and Juliana, defeated, slumped down into one of the chairs and sighed.

"I see your date has left you without a dance…do you want a replacement?"

Juliana was about to shoo away whatever random person it was, but when she looked up, she saw Eddie there.

"Ederson, what exactly are you getting at here?"

"Nothing, but you wanted a dance, I'm willing to fulfill that wish."

"I don't know." Juliana stood slowly, her hands clasped together at the front, looking nervous as she looked around for Patricia, who was nowhere to be seen from where she stood.

"Come on! I'll teach you how we do it in America." He pulled her along onto the dance floor, and a slow song came on.

She almost hesitantly put her hands on him, but did, and he put his hand on her waist, which made her stiffen. What if Patricia or Jerome saw? Or anyone else? They could easily spread rumors, since everyone knew Juliana was dating Jerome.

They danced around, looking straight into each other's eyes as they danced in circles.

"You seem to have lost your mask." Eddie commented.

"You seem to have yours as well."

He shrugged. "You seem to have lost your date."

He twirled her around, and she gracefully spun out, but he yanked her back in, so she smacked right against him as she came back in, and she looked up to him, her face covered in awe, he was only grinning, like this was fun.

She then decided it was fun, and began to dance more and more. They danced together for a few minutes, and then Jerome came up onstage, and motioned for the music to cut. He stood at the mic, and he looked out on the audience as everyone was still dancing, just before the music stopped, and looked on in horror at how Eddie and Juliana were dancing, and how they were looking at each other. Eddie couldn't like Juliana…he seemed to like Patricia! But Juliana, she looked like she was having the most fun she had in a while, as she was facing opposite Eddie, he holding her as she let her head go back onto his chest, and closed her eyes, joy and bliss written across her face, as they slowly rocked. Then as if the moment was stretching on forever, they got out of that pose and went back into a regular dance, but the way he spun her around, the way she laughed as she twirled, almost broke Jerome's heart. But the music did thankfully end, and they thankfully pulled away, obviously better friends then they had been at the start of the night.

Juliana looked up questioningly to Jerome as he rapped, Eddie laughing from beside her. 'You put him up to this didn't you?" she asked accusingly. He stuttered, figuring she'd yell at him, like she did whenever someone did something to publicly humiliate her boyfriend, but she only laughed. "That's genius! I've never heard him rap before! I could…I could kiss you right now! This is a miracle!"

"Then please, do so." Eddie winked, and Juliana snapped out of it, as Mara and Poppy ran past her, trying to grab the letter from Mr. Clarke .

"I…I have to go." She walked away, and followed after them, to find Jerome with the letter, who was angry and hurt, looking like he could scream and cry out of the feeling of ultimate betrayal.

"I expected this from you, but you." Jerome looked at his sister, then to Mara.

"Jerome, leave them alone. Mara was only trying to help-"

"And you! I don't even want to see you right now!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Juliana asked looking at him dubiously.

"Just go Juliana! I can't deal with my sister and friends betraying me, especially you!" then he pushed past the three and left, the letter clutched in his hand.

"Jerome! JEROME!" Juliana cried, trying to find him the crowd, ignoring Mara telling Poppy to let Jerome cool off. What had she done? What she done to deserve her real name from him? She was Jillian when she was with him. What was happening?

"Trouble in paradise golden princess?" Eddie spoke from behind her.

Juliana then burst into tears.

"Hey, hey I didn't mean it. Annie, I promise. Hey, hey, don't cry. Come here." He pulled her to him and hugged her, rubbing her back and whispering comforting things to her and she held on to him tightly and sobbed.

"I don't know what I did wrong, and now..now, he hates me! I don't understand!" Juliana sobbed.

"Jerry will come around. Do you want me to take you back to the house? I'll make pancakes, my special ones- best comfort food you'll ever see."

She shook her head, and stepped away from Eddie, and wiped away her tears. "No, I should stay here. I'll hang out with the others. Thanks though. Raincheck?"

"Of course. I'll see you in the morning." He then lifted her hand up to kiss it, "You're a true jewel, princess." Then he winked, and left.

She was alone again. She heard Amber saying something about Fabian kissing Joy, and immediately knew what had happened. Joy had tricked him. She marched over to where Joy was, by the wall, and slapped her hard across the face.

"How dare you! He's in love with Nina! Get over it, he doesn't like you, and he never will, not as long as Nina lives! What kind of friend are you? If Jerome was Fabes, would you have backstabbed me and tricking him into kissing you? The poem was never for you, the kiss was never meant for you, I just-" Juliana couldn't begin to explain her rage, and instead stomped her foot.

"Well, what about you, you hypocrite? I saw you with Ederson before. You two were practically feasting on each other with your eyes alone! Didn't you think about what that might do to Patricia, or Jerome? Of course not, because you're a selfist b-"

"Of course. Jerome's jealous." Then Juliana took off, leaving Joy's words hanging in the air.

...

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	25. Meet the Parents

Juliana walked into breakfast late the following, and had just passed a fuming Patricia when she entered. She spotted Eddie soaked with milk, and wondered if Patricia was mad at him for dancing with her, but didn't want to think she'd lost someone else because of the new guy so she simply asked cheerily, "So, what'd I miss?" Jerome snatched up his plate and with a face of anger, walked out past his girlfriend without saying a word.

Juliana watched him go, hurt, and everyone else at the table looked at each other, thinking all the same thing, and Jerome and Juliana were fighting. Eddie just chewed his cereal, knowing exactly what this was about, and not caring. So what if the alpha couple broke it off? That would mean another hot girl to go after, and looking at all the girls he roomed with, the one he liked he hated half of the time, and the others were either goody-goody, dumb blondes, or overachiever. Juliana was none of those, but she was smart, and had a good heart. Eddie knew if he couldn't get Patricia he'd go after Juliana, boyfriend or not, as proved by last night and by how intimate their dance was.

Juliana decided she wasn't hungry, grabbed her bag off the couch and left through the double doors outside. She got halfway to the school, before she almost tripped, and then, out of frustration, she took her bag off her shoulder and slammed it down onto the grass and then started crying.

She sat there for a few minutes, then took her stuff and ran to the old secret Sibuna meeting place and hid there for a while, until she cried herself dry. Jerome hated her, Eddie was Eddie, everyone was confused, and had no idea what they could do to help…By the time she finally got it together and had fixed the little makeup she had on, she walked out of the woods to see Mara and Jerome getting into a taxi. She ran after them. She wasn't about to actually let him go for real.

"Going somewhere?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Visiting Mr. Clarke." Mara smiled. "Want to come?" the look in her eyes said everything. She was sorry, and they should be friends again.

"Sure." Juliana nodded, and let Mara get in the middle of the backseat, not wanting to sit beside Jerome who was sure to ignore her the whole way. Maybe, maybe if the car spun out, he'd reach across to protect her…maybe. But a car crash wasn't the likeliest of factors to come true that day.

When they got in to see him, Mara was seen first, and Mr. Clarke mistook her for Jerome's girlfriend.

"No. That would be me." Juliana raised her hand slightly and stepped forward, then extended her hand out for him to shake.

"Aw well, you're very pretty." He smiled at Juliana who smiled gently back. Jerome saw the contact and freaked.

"Don't talk to her. Don't touch her." Jerome snarled, stepping in to put Juliana away from his father.

"Jerome-"

"I don't care. I want to leave-" he turned to the gate. "Open it."

Mara went over to talk to him, and Juliana stayed put.

"He loves you very much doesn't he?"

"Hasn't seemed that way lately." Juliana sighed.

"Well, he's very protective of you. I guess that's my fault. I left him to protect his sister. Joan didn't ever really have time for them." He looked past Juliana and at Jerome. "What's going on with them?" he gestured to Mara and Jerome.

"I wish I could say their just friends…but I'm not so sure anymore." Juliana admitted, her voice small.

"So why are you talking to me, and not talking to him?"

"He's mad at me. Because I danced with…with a friend at the dance last night."

"Ah, I see. He's jealous and possessive." He grinned. "I don't think you have to worry. Or else he wouldn't have told me to get away from you. He didn't tell me that when I shook Mara's hand." He pointed out, and then Jerome and Mara rejoined them, oblivious to what the pair had just spoken about.

The meeting went rather well in fact, and at the end of the time period, they all stood, and Mr. Clarke said, "Jerome, for what it's worth, I think you've grown into a fine young man, with two very beautiful young women at your side. Juliana and Mara are very bright girls. Treat her right." He added the last sentence on as an afterthought.

Juliana knew he meant her, and she smiled.

"It was great to finally meet one of Jerome's parents. Thank you for your time Mr. Clarke." Juliana smiled brightly.

"Aw, what a sweetheart. It was a pleasure to meet Jerome's girlfriend. I never thought I'd see the day. Have a good day kids." Then they were separated.

When they got back to school grounds, for the first time since last night, Jerome spoke to her.

"Are you alright? Jillian, when he touched you…I just…I'm sorry for overreacting." He put his head down.

She lifted a corner of her mouth and touched Jerome's cheek. "I thought it was sweet of you."

"I love you Jillian. I'm just-"

"A jealous guy who doesn't get his girlfriend isn't always only going to dance with him." She finished for him.

"I was going to say idiot, but that works too." Then they broke their deep gazes at each other and smiled, then leaned in and kissed. Mara took that uncomfortable vibe she was getting from just standing there, and left them to it.

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	26. Love Square Much?

"Hey Jewel." Poppy popped up out of nowhere.

"Oh gosh. Give me a heart attack won't you?" Juliana smiled as they walked on.

"So did you make up with gerbil yet?"

Juliana was about to reply as they turned the corner to see Jerome handing Mara flowers and giving her a heartfelt hug.

Juliana whipped back around the corner and hid against the wall, her eyes darting around, full of questions and doubts. Sure, they were friends and that was all good and fine, but she wasn't jealous when Jerome would hug Patricia or Amber or someone, but with Mara…it was different. She knew something was there between them that they even denied themselves, and it was probably because she was standing in their way. But she wasn't about to move out of the way.

She saw Poppy walking towards Jerome, and then she herself, went the opposite way in which she'd come, pretending she'd seen absolutely nothing.

At newspaper later, people were volunteering for the position of editor, and when Joy nominated herself, Juliana nodded in her direction to show her approval. Joy had been there first, but Nina took everything from her. So editor would at least be a small piece of her leadership back. But then, of course, Mara came in, and acted all noble, not wanting editor if it was already taken, but she decided to run against Joy. Juliana's face slid into a scowl and she wanted to strangle Mara. Who was she to ruin not one, not two, not three, but four people's lives in some way. Herself, Jerome, Joy, Mick- she had to ruin relationships, opportunities…didn't she get enough when she got class representative? No, obviously not.

Juliana, too angry to stick around for the rest of the meeting, grabbed her stuff, pushed her chair away from the table, got up, and walked out on everyone. And when Mara actually won, Juliana made a loud groan, which caused everyone to snap their heads to and for Mara to stop her winning speech.

"Oh, no. I'm sorry. Please, do go on about the annoying crap you're talking about. Because everyone loves a dictator. " Juliana grabbed her bag and walked to the front of the room. "I'll be doing my articles, but I'll be handing it in when I want to, not because this control freak wants deadlines because it's traditional. Like Joy said, deadlines don't matter anymore because we're online. I'll see you all at the next meeting." Then she spun around and left, Joy smiling. There she went. Juliana was finally growing up enough to realize Mara was one of the worst people to room with in the house, despite her good intentions, she'd caused a lot of messes. And Juliana knew better than to let her relationship spiral out of control because of her. Juliana wasn't about to become another case of Amber.

Who would Mara go after next year? Fabian? Joy tensed, not wanting to think about what she may do to Mara. But she herself was rooting for Juliana, because Juliana and her, well, they deserved to be editor and to keep the guy- not Mara. She didn't. She had Mick, was a bitch, and sent him off. But that gave her no reason to destroy her ex's cousin's relationship too. She acted like the smartest person in the world, when Juliana got the exact same marks as her, but she actually didn't shove it down everyone's throats that she was a smarty-pants.

Everyone could see Mara liked Jerome, and it was unclear who he liked more, but it was almost certain it was Juliana. Juliana hated Mara. She didn't want to fix their friendship. After Mick, she thought they could be okay like they used to be, but she'd be damned if she was about to let the ugliest girl in the house still her guy. She would not a victim of Mara Jaffray. She kept stomping over everyone, whether she meant to or not, Juliana didn't care, she just wished Mara would stop it and drop off the face of the earth. She knew Mara wasn't ugly, but she was thinking it to make herself feel better, and maybe deep down she did feel the other girls in the house were better looking than her, but it didn't matter.

Mara was wearing thin on Juliana's tolerance. If she wanted Jerome, she'd have to go through Juliana and probably all their friends, as everyone loved Juliana, she was like an innocent, a sweetheart, the only difference between her and Mara being that Juliana wasn't a boyfriend stealer. Mara could go fly to Australia and get Mick back, and Jerome was staying with Juliana. Those two had practically been together for years, and Mara wasn't about to come through with a bulldozer and ruin it all. No. This meant war.

Even Eddie agreed Mara was all too much when she was bugging him about not making his deadline. The moment Mara left, Juliana plopped down onto the couch beside him and watched the witch go.

"Great personality, don't you think?" Juliana said in her American accent. Eddie did a double take, then remembered how precisely accurate Juliana's accent was and smiled.

"Yeah, tell me about it. Wicked witch of the west." He snickered and the pair broke out into laughter. She decided Eddie was pretty cool, and they instantly clicked as friends then. She put her hand on his arm to steady herself from how much she was laughing as they both would keep saying mean things about Mara, and laugh even harder.

Jerome was passing by, and saw the contact and grimaced painfully. Eddie was trying to steal his Jillian wasn't he? It would be the American. What did girls find so attractive about boys with the opposite English accent anyway? He silently groaned and walked away. If he went in and said something, Jill would be mad for being overprotective. After all, she was allowing more space between him and Mara, so why should he be a hypocrite? He had to get that gem anyway.

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	27. Avoidance

Everything about Eddie was seemingly forgotten the next morning at breakfast as Amber opened the drain in the kitchen, spraying Victor and Jerome with the mess. Victor got the worst of it, but Jerome still looked disgusted. Juliana frowned, went to Jerome, looked at him, deemed him clean, took his hand, and skipped off to grab their bags and head off to the school.

Everyone looked at the couple in passing, then smiled at how perfect they looked together and sat down to eat, besides Eddie and Mara, who looked rather unhappy. But Eddie seemed more angry at Patricia, so it was fine.

That very night, Juliana agreed to help Jerome look for the coat of armor in the library, and not for the reason Alfie did, even though he mouthed to her his idea, which she had to admit, was clever. Juliana had been busy with work and Jerome and drama lately, but she knew enough to keep tabs on what was happening in Sibuna. She knew if she could help in any way, this would be one chance to do so.

Alfie wasn't really looking for the armor though, unlike Juliana, who was upstairs, just to make sure, but called over the railing it was clear and headed downstairs. Jerome gave up and headed out the door and Juliana followed after him, calling his name, but then turned around and mouthed fiercely for him to set off the alarm and hurry up, then she sprinted ahead to catch up with Jerome. The moment she did, the alarm behind them started blasting, and Juliana's adrenaline started racing.

"C'mon!" she tugged on Jerome's hand and they started running through the woods, Alfie close behind, both aware that Victor would cross paths with them, and they had to remain unseen. Juliana felt bad not telling Jerome, he was a Sibuna member, even if not technical, but she had sworn everyone to secrecy as to not let him in on this one. This was even deadlier than the last game they had to play against the clock. If Jerome knew Juliana could possibly be the one to die this time if they didn't get to the mask in time, he'd go ballistic, and Juliana was not willing to go through that.

Of course, early in the morning, around 3 am, Juliana crept down the hall and into Nina and Amber's room and asked if they got them.

Nina's response was by holding out an amulet for Juliana, who quietly squealed. She took it and put it over her head, then lifted her hair out of the necklace chain and put it on top.

"We better go to bed, we're going to be exhausted in the morning." Juliana suggested, the others yawned and nodded. "Night." Juliana nodded back, closed the light, then door, and went back to her bed.

Juliana overslept, so she got to the school late, but the first thing she saw as she walked through the double doors was Mara closing her eyes and hugging Jerome, who seemed surprised and happy at that. The worst thing was at how Mara was holding him..she was practically snuggling him.

Well, she wasn't about to end up like Amber. She figured Jerome wouldn't bother to tell her this bit of information, and she felt betrayed. She put her head up, as if she still had dignity, even though her boyfriend was an inch away from cheating on her with her former friend, and went past them into class. She ignored everyone, even Jerome who noticed her and left Mara to go to his girlfriend, and sat down, asking Fabian to sit down beside her for the period instead of Jerome, as Fabian was her first friend besides Jerome who walked in the door.

Fabian agreed and sat down beside Juliana, and the pair began chatting, waiting for Mrs. Andrews to start the class.

By the end, they were given homework on Shakespeare to do, and automatically, Juliana turned around and searched for Jerome and nodded when he caught her eye, saying it was a date; she'd help him with it.

The moment she did so, she instantly regretted it. There was practice for getting through the spider thread puzzle tonight in Nina's room, and this was a challenge she couldn't afford to miss. Well, she'd be helping by keeping Jerome away. She sighed. Just like old times, huh?

Fabian asked what was wrong, and Juliana put her chin down on her hand and asked monotone, "Is it that obvious?"

"Julie, you were never one to hide things from me."

"Oh, of course, Mr. kind, gentle, and smart. Forgive me for forgetting." Her smile vanished, which caused Fabian's to vanish. "I can't make it tonight. I'll be helping Jerome with this assignment."

The bell rang and they gathered their things.

"Why can't you cancel?"

"Because he'll go to Mara!" hissed Juliana, without meaning to.

Fabian blanched at her for a moment, then understood.

"Mick and Mara's relationship started by being study buddies…when he was dating-"

"Amber." Juliana finished spitefully. "I will not let myself become Amber in terms of a Mara- boyfriend stealing situation."

"Alright Julie. I'll tell the others. Just do what you did last year, keep him away from our plans…and for you, keep him away from Mara. It's a lot to do, but you can do it." He touched her shoulder comfortingly, and they locked eye contact.

"Thanks Fabes, you're the best." She leaned in, kissed him on the cheek, then hurried out to her next class, ignoring Jerome who was talking with Alfie as he waited for her. He was lost for a minute, then ran after Juliana, realizing she'd left without him.

But Juliana wasn't about to respond. She got into her next class and slid into a free seat beside Joy, leaving Jerome to have to sit by Alfie once more…all the way across the room. Jerome wasn't getting it. While he had Mara, he couldn't have Juliana and vice versa. He'd have to choose. Juliana would make him.

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	28. Choices

When Eddie and Patricia had their war in Sweet's class to see who was a better rebel, everyone found it funny, even Juliana and Jerome. Juliana still edged away from him though, still angry. Patricia got all the blame, and would have to write down the periodic table 100x, which resulted in a gasp from the Anubis boardmembers.

After class, Juliana caught up to Eddie and with a frown said, "Nice going Prince Charming."

"Hey, hey. She didn't have to…" he trailed off. "You're right." He sighed. "I'm a failure. How can I get her to trust me?"

"Ask Jerome and Mara, they're the experts on relationships nowadays." Grumbled Juliana.

"Hey, do I need to beat someone up?"

Juliana looked to him with an eyebrow raised and he responded, "I know I took your cousin's spot here, and I figured I'd take over for him. You need me to beat them up or not?"

She laughed. "No thanks Eddie. But thanks. I'm sure Fabian and Alfie already have filled that position."

"Well, if you need anything, Americans are the best fighters in the world-"

Juliana cut him off by breaking into tears.

"Oh no. Jewel, sorry." He stood there awkwardly with his hands for a second, then pulled her to him and hugged her, putting his chin on top of her head, and rubbing her back with one hand.

With her clenched hands she wrapped her arms around his neck and cried into shoulder for a moment, and when she opened them, she saw Patricia staring at her, shocked. Eddie saw Jerome on his end, looking confused. The pair pulled apart, and went their ways, trying to chase after their friends to explain to no avail.

The next morning at breakfast, Juliana found out Mara had posted an article against Vera on the school website, and there would be a hearing later on during the day.

This was just too good to be true. Everyone was saying the site may get shut down, making Mara feel worse, which only brightened Juliana's day. At the hearing, she sat beside Amber, on the opposite side of the room from Jerome and Mara.

By the end of the hearing, Sweet announced Mara was expelled, and while everyone got up and fought for her, Juliana was smiling to herself, trying to ignore Jerome who seemed the most distraught by this piece of news. Then she remembered herself and let her smile fall. She quickly made her exit, so she could get away from Mara and Jerome once more.

Juliana went to Vera's room after she had finished her schoolwork to tell her she was glad she'd won, and she believed her, but when she entered the room, no one was in there.

She was in there for a minute, maybe less, looking around, waiting, when Vera saw her as she entered and in a menacing tone said, "What are you doing here?"

Juliana turned around in a rush, her eyes wide. "Nothing Vera-" she started.

"Save it. First Mara, now you. I'm getting tired of you pests trying to expose me. Leave it the way it is. Curiosity killed the cat after all."

Juliana stood there petrified that Vera may actually kill her, but Vera stood by to let her pass, and Juliana wasted no time in running away. Her heart was beating out of chest by the time she got back into her room, and she shut the door behind her and slid down it onto the floor, realizing Mara was right. She pulled on her hair in angry frustration, and then banged on the ground. Now Juliana looked like the bad guy. She'd apologize, before Mara left the school for good.

She got her bearings and went back to the school, going to Sweet's office, to see her entire house outside the office, being pushed out by Sweet. They all were eavesdropping though, and finally Juliana couldn't take it anymore. Losing Mara forever wasn't worth it.

She burst into the room, just as Mr. Sweet said, "I thought I told you to leave-" he looked up and saw Juliana.

"Don't expel Mara Mr. Sweet. She's the smartest, kindest person I know, and expelling her would ruin your school and-"

"Juliana! I've already decided. I've revoked my decision."

Mara stood up and hugged Juliana, jumping up and down with excitement and then Mr. Sweet made Mara promise to make it up to Vera, which she hastily agreed to, just happy to be there. When they left the office, Jerome asked how it was, and when Mara replied she was staying, Jerome said, "That's my girl." And he held her close. Juliana turned sour once more as she stomped off, which left Jerome and Mara confused, but made everyone else laugh.

Later that day, after class was cancelled, Juliana went downstairs after she finished her homework for a snack, when she heard what sounded like muffled crying coming from down the boy's hallway.

Juliana hurried down the hall, thinking it may be Jerome, only to find it was Eddie on his bed, looking miserable, with tears streaking down his face.

"Hey. Hey." She said in her American accent and sat down beside him.

"Patricia hates me, she found out Sweet is my dad. I never wanted anyone to know, he was never there for me, and now he just thinks he can come and tell me what to do." He sobbed. Juliana put an arm around him and soothed him, secretly wondering if this was Eddie's version of a mental breakdown, because he didn't come off as a crier.

She promised not to tell anyone, and he told her he may be going home, which made Juliana stand up in front of him and say in indignation, "You can't leave! I won't allow it! We're friends now!"

Eddie tried to explain, but she wouldn't hear it. "Go talk to your dad. If you play nice, you'll probably get a second chance." Then she left.

The next thing she heard of it was when Eddie was talking to Sweet in his office, and Juliana overheard she passed that Eddie wanted to stay now because of his friends. Juliana just smiled and kept walking, as if she hadn't heard that one bit. Eddie was staying, but she figured he would already.

Later that day, at the ping-pong match for Jerome, Juliana saw her boyfriend getting frustrated at Mara for once for being an untrustworthy twit and telling Poppy everything, which raised her spirits so high, she went up to Jerome and for the first time in what felt like forever, kissed him on the cheek and whispered she knew he could win it, and returned to her seat. She had to admit, she loved how he looked today. His shirt made him look just that much hotter, not that any improvement was actually needed. She felt confident, but Amber and Jerome lost anyway. Until Alfie discovered the other team had cheated, and in a rematch, Jerome and Alfie won.

Juliana screamed yes in pure exhilaration, then rushed over to Jerome, who cried to her, "Jill, we did it!" and threw her lips on his, and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck as he lifted her up and kissed her back just as passionately, both smiling as they kissed from how happy they were.

The other team looked on disgusted, and finally Jerome set Juliana down, and Mara came by to congratulate Jerome.

The feeling of attraction between the two, even though the real couple had just made out in front of everyone was too much for Juliana to bear. She walked out frustrated, Nina right on her heels.

Nina asked what was wrong, and Juliana explained, which resulted in Nina giving off advice of, "Just move on and forget Jerome if this Mara business is bothering you so much."

Juliana shrugged and they kept walking, but Juliana suddenly felt weird. What had they just been talking about again? She had no idea, but it must have not been a very important topic if she couldn't remember it.

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	29. True or False?

At the party for Jerome winning the match, Jerome went up to Juliana to talk to her, but she looked at him going on about how much he loved her as if he were crazy.

"Do I know you?" she asked uncomfortably, shifting away.

Jerome laughed. "That's great Jill, now c'mon."

"My name's Juliana." She said uneasily. "I don't know any Jill here."

"Jill, what's wrong with you?"

"Stop calling me that! Stop following me, talking to me. I have no idea who you are!" Something in Juliana's eyes made Jerome see she was telling the truth. She really didn't believe she knew him at all. Their entire past had been erased somehow.

"Nina- what's going on with my girlfriend? She has no idea who I am!" Jerome said through his teeth, turning on the first person who passed him after Juliana walked away.

Nina looked at him for a moment, then thought to how she told Juliana to forget Jerome. The curse…she'd hurt Juliana now too! She'd destroyed the power couple of the school! With Fabian, his memory was deteriorating, but with Juliana, everything was immediately wiped out; years and years of memories between Jerome and Juliana- gone.

Juliana honestly had moved on too, in the sense she didn't even seem attracted to him. When a few girls would wave and flirt with Jerome because of the ping-ping match, Juliana acted like she was fine with it, like that was normal.

But it wasn't, and everyone noticed. And Jerome suddenly felt like he deserved it, because he had liked Mara, and he knew he couldn't have both girls for very long until he lost one. He just never wanted to lose Jill. And now, he had lost her completely, it was as if someone hit rewind, and everything that happened between them didn't exist.

But Juliana had only forgotten Jerome. So the next day at school, their replacement for Mrs. Andrews entered and told Mara about how Mick was doing, and that he had a new girlfriend.

Juliana immediately perked up, happy for her cousin, but also angry at him, seeing how devastated her friend looked a few seats away.

Mara made Jerome her pretend boyfriend to make Mick jealous, and while it should have bothered Juliana, it didn't affect her at all. She had no idea who Jerome even was anyway, so fine by her.

Later, Nina and Joy were in Juliana's room, looking at Mara's online page, and saw a ton of pictures of Jerome and Mara, on dates, and statuses about how great they were doing together, but Juliana shrugged and tried to close the page, but the girls stopped them.

"Julie! Jerome is your boyfriend! Don't you get it? He's yours! Don't let Mara steal him, for real or not!" Nina protested. "Don't let him get away from you. You'll regret when we lift the curse, you'll remember everything." She looked to the side, almost talking about herself, letting Fabian get away, and Joy was oblivious to the curse part of the sentence.

"Well, don't let the new girl steal your man! You were there first, liked him first!" Joy shot back. Juliana saw them fighting, and was about to shut her laptop, when a new photo popped up, of Mara and Jerome kissing.

Nina and Joy stopped their bickering to gape at the screen in complete shock. The pair was wary of Jerome, but him cheating on Juliana? That was inexcusable. Even if she couldn't remember Jerome at all; when they broke the curse, she'd remember, and she'd be broken hearted. All she'd tried so hard to avoid was coming true, and she had no idea, because she had lost part of herself.

"Julie!" they pointed and she looked at it questioningly.

"Well she got over Mick way too fast. I just checked his page, and the teacher mixed up the words to and from, so Mick doesn't have a new girlfriend."

"Julie, focus. That's your boyfriend! Your worst fear has just come true in this photo!" they nearly screamed at her.

"Poor Mick. I mean Mara is practically cheating, even if they broke up-"

"JULIANA, picture you as Mick, and Jerome as Mara- how you think Mick would feel is how you should right now, and even more so, because you two are still together!"

"So I'm dating him?" Juliana pointed at the screen.

"Yes." They said exasperated.

"And…you say that we're in love?"

"Yes."

"Then…why are they kissing?" she wrinkled her nose.

"That's what we'd like to know." muttered the other two girls.

"He is pretty cute." Juliana admitted.

"Of course he is Julie. You've always liked him." Joy smiled.

Juliana groaned. "This means we're going to have to start all over again!"

"Well, we don't have that kind of time! We need to get moving now. Or else you may lose him forever."

"I thought this was supposed to be a fake relationship?" Juliana tilted her head to the side.

"Well…we all know Jerome likes Mara. Just we thought not as much as you. And he may see your memory loss as the perfect opportunity to chase after Mara. Mick and you out of the way, and they're fair game." Joy shrugged. "Sorry."

Juliana shut her laptop and went to the door.

"What are you doing?" the girls stood.

"I need a crash course in Juliome 101. I'm going to fix this. No one is going to ruin my life."

The girls whooped as Juliana exited the room. Even without her memory, she was still the same.

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	30. Whirlwind of Despair

Juliana was in her room when her memory suddenly came back. Last thing she remembered was Nina telling her to forget the Jerome drama…and it felt like there was huge gap in between then and now, and Juliana looked around her quarters, and saw on her computer screen, a picture of Jerome and Mara…kissing.

Her heart shattered into a thousand pieces, and those pieces broke into more, and so on. Tears were pooling in her eyes and she looked down at the bedspread to blink them back, only to see a small notebook in front of her, with a page on how to get Mara back and get her "boyfriend" back…it was as if Juliana had been totally unsure of herself and what was going on, but decided to do something rebellious anyway.

She picked it up and flipped to the next page, and gawked at what she saw. It was a list of things to remember, or rather know.

The list read-

Meeting Jerome

Becoming friends, start liking him

Move away, come back, start staying in his house

Join Sibuna

Get together with Jerome after years of waiting

First date!

Mick and Mara break up, Jerome and Mara get too close for comfort

Must now save Juliome or risk losing him

There were many things scribbled in the margins, added onto the list, almost as if someone had been relaying information to Juliana, and she wrote it down, writing arrows and notes and such, as if she was trying to fit together a puzzle that didn't make much sense to her.

She was still holding the notebook in her hand questionly when Nina burst into her room with Fabian.

"Oh no. Juliana, you remember?"

"Why is Jerome cheating on me?" Juliana's voice cracked.

Nina didn't answer, and she looked down.

"Answer me!" Juliana hurled her notebook across the room and started to break down. Her greatest nightmare was coming true, right underneath her nose. "He doesn't have the decency to break up with me first?" Juliana was hysterical, and Fabian came rushing over to the bed and took her into his arms and soothed her.

"Julie, it'll be okay."

"I should just have family and you as the only guys in my life Fabes." Juliana said into his shirt.

"I was always the one who could stop you from starting a fire wasn't I?" he smiled, and the two laughed then, and Nina looked on confused, as if she was missing some inside joke, but let it go.

She walked out of the room, because it was evidently not her place to be there right now. She was the American, only a year old in the fish tank. Juliana and everyone else had been friends for ages, so she had no right to interfere. She left them to flesh it out.

Juliana stood up when she heard the call for dinner and told Fabian to go catch up with Nina.

"C'mon Julie, you're one of my best friends, I'm not about to let you starve." He frowned.

"I'll be fine, not hungry." she swore, and he hesitantly ran after Nina.

Juliana decided to let Jerome go on as if she didn't remember him, and for the next few days, she saw Mara and Jerome get closer and closer and closer and closer.

She wanted to hurl a vase at their heads in the practice that they would remember she existed.

She skipped out on the dinner for the head of the exhibition while everyone was downstairs, in an effort to avoid Jerome and Vera and the others, but as she walked out of her room, she saw Jerome enter Nina and Amber's room. She looked around, and tip-toed across and down the hall to the door and peered in. Jerome was in another deal with the enemy. Figures. The boy practically went looking for trouble.

He turned around and when he saw Juliana staring at him shocked, his grin fell completely away, replaced by a look of hesitation and fright from being caught.

"Juliana, I can explain all of this-"

"Jerome, save it. Tell me what's going on. Everything, or you're going to be in trouble."

"With who? Nina?" he scoffed.

"With me." She crossed her arms over her chest and looked to him expectantly.

He gulped.

"Juliana, Trudy's in trouble. Mara's helping-"

"Why do you keep calling me Juliana?" she narrowed her eyes.

"That's…that's your name." he seemed confused.

"It is." Juliana slowly agreed. "But to you, I'm Jillian."

Jerome's eyes suddenly sparked as he realized his girlfriend was back.

He ran to kiss her, but she held him back.

"I'm not playing nice anymore Jerome. Time and time again, I've let it go, but the minute I don't remember you, you use it to your advantage."

"What are you talking about?" Jerome scrunched up his nose.

"I know you like Mara, and I know she likes you back." Jerome seemed too happy at this when it was his girlfriend telling him this. Juliana tried to regain her composure and go on. "You two have been getting cozy ever since last term, and I hoped it would go away, but it's only gotten worse."

"Nothing ever happened between us Jill, ask Mara!"

"From where I'm standing, your argument is invalid." She swallowed back the hot tears burning at her eyes. "I've seen the pictures Jerome. The dates in an effort for you to win her, for her an effort to make my cousin jealous."

"Those were fake though, it wasn't real-" he protested.

"I saw the kiss!" she exclaimed, getting him to shut up. Her vision blurred.

"You…you what?" Jerome's voice got lower.

"I saw the kiss photo. Online."

"Jill-"

"Save it. I have no time for your excuses anymore. I should be helping my friends, not being backstabbed and cheated on by you."

"Jill!" he looked scared.

"Did you honestly think you could have us both Jerome? Were you hoping I wouldn't remember you ever, so you could stay with her and never have to feel guilty?" she turned to go.

"Jillan." He tried, but she just shook her head and walked away, trying to be strong, and save the breakdown for her room when she alone. Had she just broken up with him? She had no idea.

"Juliana!" he cried out in one last desperate attempt to reach her. She paused for a moment, took a deep breath, then kept going, not even looking back as she entered her room, closed the door, took her framed photo of Jerome and her at the prom and throwing it at the wall as the glass shattered.

She ripped apart a photo of Jerome and her from when they were younger into shreds and continued to destroy all pictures and evidence she'd ever known him or Mara.

And when she stood in all the rubble of broken glass, torn up paper and irreplaceable memory snapshots, she collapsed to the ground and sobbed, hugging herself in the fetal position, telling herself she was unlovable if this could happen to her.

All the while, Jerome stood outside the door, listening to all of it, the hurricane and her self confidence shattering, wanting to beat himself up for doing that to her. He knew she'd locked the door, so even if he tried to get in, it wouldn't work. He could only imagine all the people who'd be beating him up later when they found Juliana. His Jillian…he had no idea if she was his anymore.

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	31. Thrown Apart

Once Juliana calmed down enough for her sobs to quiet down into a steady weep, she got up and surveyed her room. For once, she didn't feel like making sure her surroundings were perfect and neat. The hurricane touching her room was welcome to wreak its havoc, she'd let it.

But she had to get out of there now. She couldn't stay in the house another moment, she'd go insane knowing Jerome was a few doors away. She grabbed a light gray sweater and put it over her denim dress, slipped on some blue flats and headed out. She opened the door and looked both ways to make sure no one was around, and when confident the others were elsewhere, she glanced back at the photos she'd never be able to replace and if she was feeling like herself, she'd feel awful, but then, she felt emotionless seeing those pictures. There was shards of glass all over the floor too, but she wasn't about to clean it up. Leave it to that liar Vera. She almost shuddered at the thought of her.

She stepped outside into the hall, and tugged the door shut behind her, then hurried down the stairs, making sure she wasn't being seen. She couldn't afford anyone to catch her with puffy, red eyes. She got outside and the cold front immediately hit her, making her pull the sweater against her tighter. She was walking down the path, crying to herself how stupid she was all along, putting herself down. A girl's self-esteem was a fragile thing after all, and she could now understand how a breakup could destroy girl's who were already weaker in their confidence. She headed down the path, running a shaking hand through her hair, the tears thickening in her throat as she wept.

Just then she was yanked off to the side by someone she couldn't see and wanted to scream but her mouth was covered.

"You'll be quiet or I'll kill you and everyone you board with in that house." The voice threatened.

She stiffened. Rufus was dead! How was this possible? But he was clad in black, and with one hand over her mouth and the other holding her hands behind her back, pushing her toward the gates, where his car must've lied.

He then threw Juliana in the trunk of the car, tied up her hands, put some tape over her mouth, and shut the world out on her.

She blacked out a moment later.

Once she woke up, she realized she was very uncomfortable and Trudy was beside her. Jerome had mentioned Trudy was in danger, but she'd been too blinded in her rage of the betrayal from him to pay his words any attention. Now she knew it was true.

"Thank goodness, you're awake!" Trudy smiled at her from the opposite wall.

"Trudy?" Juliana asked, afraid. "What's going on?"

Trudy's face fell and Juliana wished she hadn't asked. Trudy didn't answer and instead asked why Juliana seemed like she'd been crying for a long time. Juliana was about to answer when the door opened letting in natural light and Juliana almost shut her eyes from how bright it was. It felt like forever since she'd seen light, but it must've been only a few hours.

"I've called my agent to tell everyone at your pathetic excuse for a school you've gone home on holiday."

"Vera." Juliana whispered under her breath. She was going to tell everyone Juliana was safe, taking a vacation, so no one would have any suspicions as to why she wasn't there.

Jerome would understand, he'd get she'd want to get away from him as fast as possible, even if it meant not saying goodbye to anyone.

She knew enough of Rufus to know that once the blackmail for whoever wanted Trudy and her back ceased to exist, the two would have lived out their usefulness, and Rufus would kill them.

She figured Rufus wanted her to blackmail her friends, and also for information on the Mask of Anubis. What was she going to do? She was trapped, and alone except for Trudy.

….

Jerome realized Juliana was gone, and when he heard the others asking where she was, she heard Vera say she'd visited home suddenly last night. Jerome knew his girlfriend, or ex…he didn't know anymore, well enough to know she was strong and wouldn't run away from school and head home for a while to escape. She'd take a few hours to cool down, walking around the grounds, but she'd never leave completely. Something had happened to her, and he had to figure out what. He blamed himself for her disappearance. He was the last person to see her, and she hadn't been in great shape, and there was only himself to blame. He was such an idiot, he'd let her slip through his fingers, and she was missing- he wasn't buying the story Vera told the others. Vera was a suspicious figure, and he figured she'd had something to do with it.

When he followed Jasper to see the Collector, he'd heard the Collector say he had the girl and Trudy locked up safe, and Jerome realized he meant Juliana. Meanwhile, Patricia finally understood Juliana's hatred of Mara, when she saw Eddie and Mara together, even though they were only friends.

Finally, a few more days passed, and when word of Jerome stealing the dollhouse came out, he told the whole story…and how he not only speculated, but knew Rufus had Juliana as well as Trudy.

The others seemed showed but they took this as the truth, knowing Jerome would never lie about something concerning Juliana. He loved her too much; at least, that's what they thought. They still were blissfully unaware of Juliana and his fallout. But they were right; Jerome was clearly falling apart knowing she was in danger. He could only imagine how Juliana must have felt last year when it was him in Rufus' clutches, but now he knew. At least he'd been there, Jerome had actually lost Juliana, because she was gone, not in school at all.

He was the worst boyfriend in the world. He deserved the pain he was getting, but his Jillian didn't. If Rufus did anything to her…he couldn't think about that, or he'd really lose it. He just had to focus on saving his Jill; it didn't matter if she wanted him or not, he was going to do whatever it took to save her.

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	32. Blabber Mouth

Juliana was trying to rub against a sharp blade of metal to cut the bindings on her hands, because the ropes were not only restricting her, but they were chaffing into her skin as well. She grimaced as she only got a few fibers deeper. Trudy needed her, and she wasn't going to be a sitting duck. She wouldn't be weak, especially now. Just then, she heard some voices outside, and the locks clicked open, and the door swung open. Jerome, Amber, and Fabian ran in. Jerome saw her, and his eyes opened to saucer-like proportions and he whispered her name and ran to untie the ropes while the others worked on Trudy.

"I'm so sorry Jillian, I never wanted you to get hurt." He whispered painfully as he freed her. She was quiet and when she felt the ropes grow loose and fall, she stood, looked straight at him, lifted her head and said, "I have nothing to say to you."

Then, she sauntered over to the others, making Jerome only want her more, because she was being difficult.

Just they began towards the door, they heard the lock, and banged on the door begging Rufus to let them out, but nothing happened.

Jerome began working on prying a metal sheet apart to climb through to get out and Juliana watched him slave over that, feeling bad for how she was treating him. He'd rescued her, but then again, all he cared about was that stupid rock. She felt around her neck and felt the sapphire against her neck. She still had it on. She ripped it off, despite the pain the chain pressing into her neck had caused, and the chain broke. Content, she chucked it at Jerome, and he dropped the metal rod and grabbed it.

He looked at it, and then to her heartbreakingly.

She was taking deep breaths through her nose, her mouth set in a grim, straight line, trying her best to look demeaning and confident, but wanting to go cry again. But she wasn't about to give him that satisfaction, and she couldn't afford to have another mental breakdown when they were in a life threatening situation. They needed her to get out. Just then Fabian said an engine was coming, and everyone crowded towards the door, listening.

"It's not Rufus." Jerome clarified from right beside Juliana's ear. She jerked away and leaned closer to the others, and suddenly, everyone began to back away, hearing the engine coming right at them.

Jerome was first to move, the coward. But he automatically in an effort to protect his Jillian, pulled Juliana back with him. They scattered backwards, and she hid in her safe harbor, his arms, when the door came crashing down. He rubbed her back as he felt her tremble, holding onto him fiercely; almost afraid something would happen to him, not her.

It was Alfie, saving the day. Everyone sighed in relief, and they went back to the school, safe…except Trudy lost some of her memory. Of course, Jerome was just glad he'd pulled Juliana back, or else he might have lost her again. Losing her like this was less painful then her not knowing him at all. She was right though. He was terrible, and he deserved this attitude from her.

Even Jerome's father was stern when he learned of the breakup. He liked Mara and wanted them together, but he'd also liked Juliana. Something about Juliana just made more sense to Mr. Clarke for his son. Mara and Juliana were very much the same, but Juliana was more devious, more real…much more flawed, making her perfect for his son.

The next few days were rough. When Jerome and Eddie outed Joy in front of the entire class for writing against Nina, she'd run out crying, after being accused of blackmailing Mara. Juliana stood up and ran after her, pausing by Jerome to call him a complete idiot, and continuing on, cursing the blonde boys of Anubis house under her breath.

"Joy!" Juliana jogged over.

"It's unfair! Nina took everything from me, and now Mara is too!"

Mara was just so easy to hate. Not so much out of jealousy, but out of anger. Like Joy or Juliana was jealous of that "innocent." Mara the Saint, very likely; Juliana rolled her eyes mentally.

"Mara needs to go. Just as much as Nina. Both have their pros and cons…but we're veterans compared to them. Joy, it's unfair. We're being selfish I know, but…" Juliana cut off. She knew her feelings were wrong, but she couldn't help but hate Mara. There were valid and nonvalid reasons to hate the girl.

Juliana should just accept Jerome preferred Mara, and move on. But it wasn't that easy. She was in love with that twit, for all he was worth. How stupid she was to pay no attention to Jerome and Mara growing closer and closer. She missed him. But if she went crawling back…she couldn't very likely do that anyway, he wouldn't want her. The moment he thought he could be free from her, he'd ran after the other girl. Now he was actually free…he would push her away if she ever tried to come close to him again. It had been years since Jerome and Juliana had referred to each other as strangers or acquaintances, so doing it now seemed out of place and odd, but that was their relationship now. She should have just left it as a friendship and let Mara go to Jerome. Then they could have been happy together with what they really wanted, and Mick and his cousin would never have gotten in "true love's way."

Juliana was brought back to earth by Joy's sobs as Joy wrapped her arms around her tightly, seeking support. No, Juliana would be who she used to be before Jerome. Strong, independent…the best friend to everyone when they needed a shoulder to cry on most. She had to get her priorities straight, and Jerome would never be on that list again. She would make sure of it.

Juliana got back to the house late that evening, and knew she had missed dinner, like always, and when walking into her room, which had been cleaned, but was now wiped completely off of personal photos besides her and Mick and Fabian, or her with the girls (Mara had been ripped out of the picture), it was almost cold and barren somehow. It was filled with Juliana things, telling the story of her life practically…but without those photos…a piece of her was missing. Juliana had a talent for photography…and without all those pictures…it was different and strange, like an alien planet. She went to her bed and looked at the trashcan beside the night table, filled to the brim with photos she'd ripped up that could never be replaced. She then realized a plate was on her night stand…a note on it from Patricia said Joy didn't want it, and she knew Julie hadn't eaten, so she'd brought it to her room for her. Juliana smiled weakly. Her friends were always there for her, remembering she existed. Her real friends in this place were limited, and the people she could trust was even smaller.

She went downstairs to grab a drink and was about to enter through the kitchen door when she saw Jerome lean in to kiss Mara. She flipped back around and hid right against the wall beside the entrance and held her breath. She listened in to their conversation while they tidied up the kitchen, and when Jerome walked out, he saw Juliana standing there, her eyes filed to the brim with tears, looking at him with fresh wounds pouring out of her soul, and reopened cuts oozed with pain and suffering. She knew it, and he'd confirmed it. He was free, and happy as a bird to be so. He was just waiting for Mick and Mara to end, and then he could be truly happy. Mara liked Jerome a lot too…she just liked Mick a tad more. Same as Jerome and her, Julie, used to be…until things changed…less than a week ago too!

"Juliana." Jerome immediately said, reaching towards her. She shrunk away. "Glad to know you've moved on so quickly. So much for being in love with me huh. Bet it was a real joke on your part. You always were a prankster." She turned on her heel and darted away, up the stairs, leaving Jerome speechless. Juliana made it to the top stair before she collapsed on the wooden floor and broke into sobs.

Minutes later, with her timing, the phone went off, and Trudy answered.

"Juliana, Mick is calling for you!" Trudy called up.

"Coming!" Juliana ran down the stairs and practically jumped into the seat beside the phone, putting the phone to her ear, whispering hello, and doing her best to sound happy, wiping her tears away.

Mick wasn't very sharp, but he knew Juliana well enough to know she wasn't okay, but was doing her best to make him believe she was.

"Jules, is everything okay?"

She sighed inwardly. It'd been so long since she'd heard that nickname, as it was reserved for only him to use, just as Jillian was Jerome's trademark for her.

"Yeah. Great. It's amazing here. So much fun." She sniffed.

"Jules, who made you cry?" he asked seriously.

"No one, what are you-"

"Jules, don't act like this. Jerome did it didn't he? I told you from the beginning Jules-"

"Mick…not now…please."

"You need to talk about this." He urged.

"Not so soon…not on the phone…I may ruin a relationship if I told you what's been happening between my boyfriend and a certain other. Ex boyfriend I mean." She winced. It was harder than it seemed, keeping cool. Girls weren't supposed to be suddenly lose all their will and strength over the opposite gender! It was lame, stereotypical. And Juliana refused to be a stereotype.

"Who?"

"Mick…Mara and Jerome are…they've too cozy for anyone's well being." There, she'd done it. She was going to hurt herself, her cousin, and Mara…and in the end…she'd only be doing her ex a favor…She was an idiot…but he deserved to be happy, even if she wouldn't. No one else deserved the pain she was going through.

"What!"

"Oh, sorry Mick, lots of homework. Love you, got to go, bye!" she rushed and put the phone down, and once it hung up, she pushed her hair back and felt her wet face, sticky with tears. When would she learn?

...

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	33. A Total Eclipse of the Heart

She got called for a Sibuna meeting later on that night, and the game was going well, Juliana doing her best to appear fine so no questions would be asked. But then one wrong move got Nina sucked down through the floor. Fabian began to cry, and the others managed back to the start. Alfie made a stupid comment, and Fabian took off running in hysterics. Juliana shot him a dirty look then sprinted after her friend, the others instantly following behind.

She got through the bookcase and went over to him and put one hand on his back, rubbing soothingly to calm him.

"Fabian, we'll find her. I promise." She whispered, and he reached for her hand and gripped it tightly.

"I'm sorry Julie. You have enough on your plate, I shouldn't be asking this of you."

"Fabes, we all have stuff on our plate. And I'm doing this for all of us. I'd rather be here with you, helping you, then be upstairs crying my heart out over a guy who cheated on me." She smiled. "You need me right now, and I'm not going anywhere." she pulled him to face her, and she embraced him tightly, whispering in his ear calming words.

The others ran through, and then Senkara appeared, saying she no longer had any use for them, and she began to kill them.

"And how touching of you! The chosen one's love is now flocking to smart blonde!"

Amber frowned at this. She could be the smart blonde too! But Juliana looked stricken.

Fabian stepped up to bat and managed to save them all for the time-being, but the comment stuck with him. He and Juliana were like siblings…that was all. They had their own loves…and their own troubles in paradise right now. They leaned on each other…so what?

Juliana was thinking that, and how if she died, it'd be best…Jerome wouldn't care, he could be happy if she was permanently gone.

They ran out of the cellar and went to class. But Fabian was too distraught and ran out of class to tell Sweet Nina was missing. Juliana immediately bolted after him, along with Amber, however unlike Amber, Juliana took Fabian's side. But the second they realized Nina was alive, and they had to rescue her, Fabian hugged Amber and kissed Juliana's cheek in pure elation.

They, on a surge of hope, went back to retry the game…and all was well…until Alfie was being sucked in.

Patricia managed to pull him out, and Juliana began to breathe again. She wasn't losing someone else. She'd lost one too many already.

They got back to start and ran back upstairs, Juliana not stopping until she got to the secret study.

"Julie, you alright?"

"I'm fine. Just a bit scared for us though." Juliana took in a deep breath. "It's nothing, pay me no attention." She flashed a bright smile at the others and they bought her act convincingly.

"See? Julie is so brave and pretty! We should all be more like her." Amber tilted her head to the side wonderingly and Juliana hid a grimace. No one should be like her. She wasn't worth impersonating.

"I mean, after breaking it off with Jerome-"

Juliana almost tripped over her feet hearing his name; it was too soon.

"Amber!" Patricia and Fabian reprimanded her, while Alfie came over and whispered, "Anytime we need to deal with him, I'll do it. You're hereby relived from Jerome duties."

Juliana looked to her friend gratefully. She wouldn't be responsible for Jerome anymore…and she no longer had to be the bridge between Sibuna and him…Alfie would take over. Thank god.

They headed upstairs to go to class, and once there- a fight between Mara and Joy broke out, and Juliana, sitting as far from Jerome and Mara as the room allowed tried to keep to herself, to not draw attention, but when Joy stood up and said, "For once I wanted to do something that was all mine," Juliana had to stand up with her things as well and say, "For once Mara, you didn't have to get everything you wanted." She glanced at Jerome, and then headed after Joy.

"You're spoiled Mara. The world doesn't revolve around you." Juliana called over her shoulder as she walked out, putting up one hand in a goodbye gesture before disappearing. Mara looked shocked, as did everyone else.

But the moment she won Blogger of the Year, Mara was happy once more. Juliana and Joy muttered, "typical." Which it definitely was.

Juliana decided to turn in early that night, so she missed the final game, but when she woke up later that evening, everyone was back. But they had yet to retrieve the mask…and if they didn't get it soon…they'd all die.

The next morning, at a meeting in Nina's room, Patricia rushed in, and told them Jerome had been taken by Rufus.

Juliana stood up immediately, almost falling over with her momentum. "We have to save him."

So, against everyone's wishes, she went with Patricia, Fabian, and Alfie to retrieve the Clarke boy.

Everyone questioned Juliana for going, because she was supposed to despise him now, but she was so in love with him still, her heart overrode her mind and reason.

Earlier that morning, when walking downstairs, she saw Mick in the foyer, and she'd been elated. She'd scampered down the remainder of the stairs and then threw herself in his arms.

"Hey Jules." He chuckled.

"Mick. I'm so glad you're here."

"Jules…what happened with Jerome?"

She stepped away. "Nothing."

"On the phone-"

"I was just mad at him so I made up a lie." She waved her hand dismissively, but Mick grabbed it and pulled so she would be forced to him.

"Jules, then what did you say about Mara?"

"I was mad at how she gets everything. I took Joy's side in a fight they were having. It's the truth."

Mick studied her, but he had never been the sharpest, so he took her word for the real deal, and let her go.

But her cousin's opinions on Jerome wouldn't interfere in this.

Just as they were coming up with a plan to get Jerome out of his holding prison, they saw him dart out the door and hide from Rufus.

"Yes!" Juliana whispered excitedly, a smile on her face.

Fabian threw a rock to throw Rufus off, but Jerome still was found.

"You're not going anywhere." Rufus muttered to Jerome and began to force him with him.

"Jerome!" Juliana panicked and began to race towards him, but Alfie and Fabian pulled her back.

"We can't have you get caught too!" they muttered, and she stopped fidgeting.

By the time they actually busted into the holding cell, they found Eddie, not Jerome.

Juliana didn't bother to disguise her disappointment. The devastating truth then dawned on her, and she snapped her head towards the door, raced out, and looked at Rufus' car leaving in the dust. Her eyes wide, she told the others, not looking away from the car, "Rufus took Jerome with him."

She wanted to pound her head on a table for their stupidity, but that wouldn't do Jerome any good.

"We need to get back to the house now!" she then started running, the others followed with Eddie. "Rufus wants immortality…and I bet he's planning to get the Mask…he'll go to the cellar. C'mon, hurry!"

At the house in the kitchen, Alfie offered to save Jerome, and immediately Juliana volunteered too. "No one else knows him better." She told Alfie, and he smiled to her gratefully, not wanting to go it alone.

"I'll go too!" Amber went in after them in order to watch Alfie.

They got through into the passage, with their amulets, and as they went through the bookcase, Juliana whispered to the other two with her, "Ready?"

They quickly jerked their head yes, and then they raced off. As they got closer, they crept down the hall.

When she saw her hunch was right, Juliana almost leapt for joy.

Victor was down there too, confronting Rufus, and Jerome was behind Rufus, looking scared out of his mind. Juliana suddenly felt the same way he did, but for his safety, not hers.

Alfie ended up with the mask, and ran, the two adults running after him, with Amber being Alfie's personal cheerleader.

Juliana had smiled as Alfie ran like the wind, but then, she remembered her original mission of the day. She turned to Jerome, and then walked towards him, while he looked on expectantly and hopefully, wanting so bad to be forgiven.

She built her speed and ended up practically jogging into his embrace. Immediately his arms clamped down on her as they hugged.

There were no words, but a shared silence, and it spoke more than words ever could.

She didn't want the moment pass, and she grabbed onto him fiercely, savoring the thing she thought would never happen again.

Amber broke the moment by saying, "Cute, but that doesn't make up for what you did." She was looking straight at Jerome, her arms crossed over her chest. Juliana awkwardly pulled out of Jerome's arms and without looking at him agreed with her friend. They hurried back the way they'd come, but instead of going to the house, they went to the library path.

They crawled out into the midst of everyone and Nina put on the real mask, becoming one with Senkara.

Fabian tried to stop her, but Nina…Senkara shot out a burst of power at him, and Joy pushed him out of the way, and not being able to see Joy lose again to everyone else, she pushed Joy, and ended up getting the fatal blow.

"Jillian!" Jerome screamed and ran to her. She immediately crumpled to the ground, and while Jerome and a few of the others watched over her, the rest of the fight went on, including Rufus' defeat, hopefully for the last time.

Victor rushed over to check her pulse, and said it was very faint. Jerome began to sob, seeing her deathly pale face, and understanding how she'd felt this time last year. Everyone was in tears, until the last tear of gold on the mask was noticed. It could bring her back!

Victor tipped it down her throat, and instantly, Juliana's pallor returned, and she sat up, whispering, "Jerome?" as if she'd heard him worrying over her the whole time.

"Jillian! My Jillian!" he picked her up and spun her around, and as he put her down, he kissed her, making everyone go silent and Juliana's heart pounded.

She kissed him back. If only Mara could see it now!

"I love you Jillian, don't ever do that to me again." Jerome held her face close to look straight into her eyes. The eyes which held so much adoration and devotion to him underneath her hurt for his betrayal.

Juliana just smiled and snuggled against him, knowing it would soon end, the moment Mara was around again. And it was true, at the house party later, Juliana watched from the sidelines as Poppy, Jerome, and their dad were officially reunited as a real family again, and she noted how Mara was looking at Jerome…the same way she did…but of course, Juliana's gaze held much deeper emotions. She conveyed so much more than Mara did.

And to her horror, Jerome went over to Mara, begged her to go out with him, she said yes, and they kissed…the kiss was excruciatingly painful to watch, and for the time it drove on, it was even worse. It was neverending!

Mick was beside her and he made a silent chuckle beside her.

"Don't start Mick." She said irratedly.

"What?" he looked surprised.

"Don't tell me how wrong I was, and how you were right all along, because it won't do anything."

"Jules, you've been around that bean pole too much. I'd never rub it in your face like he would. I care about you. I just want you to be happy."

"Not exactly going to happen for a while." Juliana sighed, locking eyes with Jerome for a second as he broke away from Mara and to his family, and saw his ex watching hurt from behind them.

She probably felt conflicted. His own mixed feelings were screwing everything up. He loved Jillian, but he liked Mara, and he'd wanted to see where he and Mara could go for a long time. He'd have to break one of their hearts permanently eventually, but tonight wasn't the night.

Juliana wanted Jerome to pick her, and after earlier, she had almost thought everything would be okay again, but it wasn't that simple.

When a slow song came on, and all the couples began to dance, Juliana finally had enough and marched out, ignoring Nina and Fabian, and everyone else as she began to walk down the path, until she got to the library. She looked around, made sure no one was around, then walked inside, closing each door behind her, and locking it, so she could be alone. She got halfway up the curvy stairs before she refused to go any farther and she sat down and sighed. She'd run out of tears lately, and looking down at the ground, she almost wished she had died there. She wanted everything to be as it had been last year…a happy ending…when would she get hers?

**...**

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**I promise this isn't the end! When Season 3 comes on, I'll be back once more, and hopefully, my writing will have improved again ;)**

**I thank all of you for sticking with me, no matter if you started today, or if you've been here with me from the beginning. Your feedback means the world to me, and it's made Juliana grow into a special place in my heart. I hope Juliana has become as precious to you as she has to me, and I'll see you soon.**

**-M**


	34. A New Girl

Juliana went straight up to her room, sure no one else was there yet, she wished to get settled in before the big get-together-for-a-new-term thing started.

She had begun to unpack her bags, and realized her mother had packed a photo frame for her to put on her nightstand in Anubis house, of family or something. Her mother knew all about the nasty breakup, and she no longer asked why Juliana wasn't inviting Mara over anymore, and when Patricia and the other girls visited, Mara was a taboo subject.

But yet, her mum must've mixed up the identical frames or something, because on top of her neat clothing, was a photo of Jerome kissing her on the cheek while she laughed and smiled like the happiest girl in the universe. Even Mara was on the side of the picture, on Juliana's other side, kissing her other cheek, just not in the sweet, romantic way that Jerome was definitely going for. Juliana looked at the picture from her last birthday and sighed. Everything had been so different then, and she ran her hand delicately over the glass covering. Touching that barrier made it obvious it was a simple memory, and that she'd never share times with them like that ever again. Juliana Clarewell wasn't the same girl in the picture. She took the photo and shoved it in a bottom drawer facedown, so hopefully she'd forget about it until she was repacking at the term's end. Tempted to shatter it, that she was, but she'd gone through that hurricane of a breakdown once before, and if she let herself go one more time, who knew if she'd bounce back at all? Breaking it wouldn't change anything, there'd just a shattering of glass she'd have to pick up later. Juliana somewhat regretted that day she destroyed pictures of Jerome or Mara that she had. Precious memories she'd never get back, but her mum obviously still had the memory cards, and her mum was a genius at retrieving deleted things from laptops or phones- so if Juliana so desired it, she could easily get those pictures back.

But maybe the fact that she could in fact retrieve them again, made her not want them at all. When she'd returned at the end of the previous term, Juliana had been puffy-eyed, and her mother immediately recognized something was wrong. She'd pulled her daughter aside before Mr. Clarewell could notice, and Juliana told her the whole story.

"Well, Jerome was never good enough for you anyway. He's too…sly and his laugh-"

"But he has the cutest laugh!" Juliana moaned, falling backwards onto her bed. "And you've told me time and time again going out with him had been fate or something, because we were meant to be."

"It was meant to be in your fate that he'd break up with you, so you could find the right one! What about Alfie? Or that Eddie boy I've heard about?"

"Ew Mum, Alfie is dating Amber, and Eddie's with Patricia." Juliana had a muffled voice, because at that point, she'd put a pillow over her face.

"Okay, what about Fabian? He's been your best friend since you two could talk!"

That was true; she'd actually gone to school with Fabian for years now. Juliana shot up, the pillow falling to the side. "Mum, he's dating _Nina_. Everyone is taken but me!"

"And Joy! Bless Joy, the sweetheart." Juliana only had groaned in response to that and muttered she'd live.

When Juliana had left for the bathroom and came back, her photo beside her bed was gone. Juliana had always just presumed her mother had thrown it away, but apparently, she'd simply stored it in the attic. Was her mum trying to tell her to reconcile, or was it an honest mistake?

She heard Amber and Joy down the hall, settling in themselves, and Juliana straightened up and crossed over to the mirror. This mirror no longer reflected back a sweet, girlish girl with beautiful, golden, long cornsilk hair who loved sundresses and tall boys with funny laughs and blonde hair.

Instead, a girl with dull eyes, reddish-brown hair, and lots of open, flowy shirts and skinny jeans had taken her place. She'd even cut her hair about 2 inches, just a tad past her shoulders now it remained. It was fringed, and while she looked good, sexy even, one could say, it was not something the old Juliana would have donned on her. The old Juliana was blonde but brilliant, and was the sweet girly one of the group who was a bargain shopper- nothing like Ambers extreme of a girly-girl.

Juliana then stepped into the hall and headed to Joy's room, where she found both girls.

For a moment they simply stared at their old friend, but then realized the cute blonde Ana was now the sexy brunette Julie.

"Ana!" Amber cried out, going to hug her. I love the new style. You look ah-mazing."

"You look great! How was your vacation?" Joy joined the hug. What she really meant was if Juliana was coping well post-breakup, as over break it truly hit her. He'd never call or come over again like he used to for spontaneous dates. Seeing pictures online on social networking sites of _those two_ weren't helping either.

Juliana nodded, "It was fine. Nothing special though, but Amber, how was the Big Apple?"Amber squealed, then began her tale on how gorgeous the city was, and how Saks Fifth Avenue was like a dream, when there were more voices downstairs.

"Honey, I'm home!" Eddie called, and the three girls upstairs gave each other one smiling glance, then hurried to the staircase.

"Welcome home darling!" Juliana exaggerated, laughing, as she headed down the stairs to greet her friends.

Hey Julie! How you feeling?"

"Like a gerbil is trying to eat away at my soul." Groaned Juliana, and Eddie chuckled. "Same as always, like the new 'do by the way. I'll miss your old blonde hair, but this fits you too."

Juliana pulled out of the hug, smiled, and then hugged Patricia, who had just come through the door.

"Oh god, Jules, your hair." Patricia looked over her in surprise. "It looks so great, but so different." Patricia seemed utterly shocked by this, and Juliana decided it best to move on to the next person. She skipped Jerome and Mara, pretending they didn't even exist, and then heard-

"Aren't you forgetting someone? It's not like we've known each other for our entire lives or anything."

Juliana broke out into the biggest grin she'd had all day, and jumped into her friend's arms. "Fabes!" she cried out, and he laughed as he held her up for a second in a tight hug before setting her down. Only she had known Fabian longer than Joy, and he was the person who came over the most over break. Of course, often their talk was Nina, but they still had fun. As long as no mention of Jerome or Mara was there, she had no problem with the subject.

They all headed into the dining room to get the Trudy food they'd all been missing, and when Alfie asked Jerome, "Did you get taller or is it just the hair?" Juliana breezily retorted, "No, it's his _ego_," as she stared at the muffin on her plate.

It was silent for a second before talk picked up once more and Juliana shot one glare at the happy, annoying couple before going over to the couch where the other girls and Fabian were.

Victor came in with Mr. Sweet, announced Nina wasn't coming back, and left, leaving everyone confused. It was so sudden and unexpected, out of nowhere, so nobody had any idea what to think. Juliana was going around, thinking about what this would do to Fabian, when she saw Jerome drop Mara's luggage down the staircase, and it opened, letting Mara's clothes go everywhere.

"Jerome!" Mara gasped, upset and Juliana passed by, snickering. Well, maybe she should have carried her own luggage, the little brat. She'd never made Jerome carry her luggage, and if she had, she would have never practically yelled at him for dropping it. Was Mara expecting Mr. Perfect?

Whatever, Mara had a cheater for a boyfriend. If he cheated on someone with her, who was to say he wouldn't cheat on her with someone else? Juliana was just praying for karma to finally catch up with that pair soon.

Fabian was practically crying when Juliana ran into him again, and she immediately took him into her arms, feeling bad for him. The two of them, and Patricia, as her and Eddie were done too, should just throw themselves a pity party of being single.

A girl named KT came to take Nina's spot at the house, and Juliana introduced herself shortly but politely, and turned her attention back to her friend who was worrying himself sick over Nina.

The next morning was Amber's birthday, and Mara had the idea for a surprise party and to make Amber's day miserable until that night by making her believe she'd gotten no presents, and that no one remembered her birthday.

Juliana had not agreed to this plan in the slightest, so just to spite Mara, when Amber came in all depressed, Juliana hugged her friend and wished her a happy birthday.

"Where's my present?"

"No mail today remember? It'll ship to here by tomorrow." Truth was, Mara had taken Juliana's gift too in the mail, so Juliana wasn't able to give it to Amber unless she ventured into Jerome's room, and she was not about to do that. Plus, if she did, and if she got caught, she'd look like a crazy stalker of an ex-girlfriend.

"Boo. Well, at least _somebody_ remembered." Amber glared at everyone else before grabbing breakfast and heading off to school with Juliana, who'd already eaten.

In school, in between classes, Eddie pulled her aside into an empty classroom asking for help.

"Eddie, depends on what you mean-"

"What would you say to a guy if you were breaking up with him? This is important. Help?"

Juliana wondered about his intentions for a minute, then gave in. "Alright, classic it's not you, it's me stuff. Blah blah, I love you, not in love blah blah." Juliana said a few things before the words changed and got scarily specific. "Cheating on someone is not good to do. You're an evil soul who obviously prefers whiny, annoying girls who try to come off as innocent, and then date your girlfriend's cousin before dating one of her best friend's boyfriends! Even though this girl knew that this friend had liked you for years, and once I finally had you, she had to ruin everything, and there are some lines people should never cross, and now I wish we'd broken up sooner because it turns out that you've just been stringing me along this entire time it seems! Hate you and hope you fall in a dark pit and end up worse than your father did!" Juliana was so into it, that by the end she was breathing hard, her face tinged with red. She would've kept going if Eddie hadn't stopped her.

"Um…thanks Julie. I'll just get extra advice from someone else…" he headed out the door and Juliana then heard, "KT! KT!"

The day passed quickly, and Amber's party had happened, and it seemed the day was passing in a blur, when Juliana heard shouting from the hall.

"That sounds likes Fabian." Juliana whispered, eyes wide, before she started out the door. Fabian was screaming at Eddie, and when Fabian lunged at Eddie, Juliana got in the middle to keep him from attacking the American boy. The fight was over in seconds because everyone had come running, and everyone had gone back into the dining room, except for Juliana who was last. She saw KT going downstairs to the basement, looking behind her shoulder and everything, and narrowing her eyes, Juliana followed her. She had gone halfway down before she heard Victor yelling at KT, and when KT was scrambling up the stairs to get away from Victor, Juliana realized she had to run too, and got back up the stairs and pressed herself against the wall around the corner, in time for KT, and then Victor to emerge and go their separate ways. Juliana breathed a sigh of relief, but the wheels were turning in her head again. Just what was KT up to?

* * *

**A new chapter! Yay! Seriously, glad to be back :) More Jerome at last! And Fabian and everyone else too! xD**

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	35. Jillian's Gone

After a boring party, Juliana ended up watching Jerome cleaning up with Mara somehow. It wasn't like she meant to, she had been walking by and heard chatter and laugher. Of course, with her recently negative mood, she was drawn to the laugher and joy like flies to light. As soon as she saw the source though, she wanted to run. It was like the flies going right into one of those death traps humans set up, and she couldn't escape. She felt stuck listening, but too angry and jealous to just leave.

She basically accomplished nothing by being there; she just kept building in her intense hatred for the pair inside the kitchen. Angry Mara existed; angry Mara betrayed her; angry Jerome was a douche; angry for choosing Mara; and angry at herself for not trying harder last term to fight for him. There had to be a reason for why he cheated on her. But what, she had yet to find out. She wanted to know though, but talking to Jerome one-on-one was unpredictable and scary and uncomfortable, but in front of everyone else was just as bad, if not worse.

Finally, she found herself able to pull away from the outside of the kitchen door, somehow letting go, and traveled upstairs to seek a scene with other people she could actually enjoy her time with.

However, finding them wasn't exactly enjoyable. She walked into Amber's room, and Joy stood right beside her, concerned for Fabian crying on Nina's old bed. Amber had just run out past her as she herself entered, and Juliana stood there for about 3 seconds, hearing Joy call out to Fabian, then sat down beside Fabian, pulling him close to her as he leaned his head on her shoulder. She hugged him and put her cheek down on his hair, closing her eyes, soothing him when no one else would.

He began to weep and while the others looked on in silence, Juliana rubbed his back and comforted him. Amber was forgotten, that millisecond Juliana had considered chasing after her before seeing Fabian's state completely erased from her mind. Joy looked on in such a way, wondering if Juliana could possibly be a threat. They were best friends, but Joy had always known Julie loved Jerome. But were things changing again? Too much change, too much drama.

"Fabes. It's okay. We're here, we love you."

"But Nina-"

"I love you Fabian. If you can't be strong for Nina's sake, or Amber's, or Joy's, then be so for me. Okay? Remember the finger-painting. Easy times. Think of that. It'll be okay. I'm here now. Joy's here. You're not alone anymore. You don't have to be the big, tough leader, we can take over for you."

"Juliana-"

"You're going to be okay. You can visit Nina over break or something. It's just Eddie and her that need to be kept apart right? Then you're okay. You'll see her again, promise."

"Thanks Juliana."

Juliana smiled gently and continued to hold him for a while longer until he calmed down. And then it was curfew, and everyone had to return to their rooms.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" Joy asked, watching Fabian disappear down the hall downstairs from the top of the staircase.

"Definitely. He's tough for a nice guy." Juliana said, not breaking her eye contact on where Fabian had last been seen by her.

"What…what was that finger-painting thing you said before?"

"Oh?" Juliana flipped around to face Joy. "That." She tilted her head and smiled fondly in memory. "In daycare once, some boy put paint in my hair, and I was crying…but Fabian came to my rescue like a knight in shining armor. He told off the kid, and helped me wash out the paint from my hair. We had been friends for a short time before that day, and I'd sort of liked him on some level- as much as someone can when they're under 4 years old, but that just totally cemented it. We became best friends, and cooties were nonexistent for us…Funny, how we'd be teased about cooties, but we didn't even care. He was…is my best friend."

"You liked him?"

"That ended when…when I…"

"Met Jerome." Joy finished sadly, remembering when they'd all first met. Juliana was silent for a moment, and looked at the chandelier, the light reflecting dully into her eyes.

Joy remembered that first day well. Fabian and Juliana were talking about going to the housing department of the school to get them into the same house, when they'd bumped into Patricia and Joy and Mara.

They all found out they were in Anubis House together, except Juliana of course, and headed there together, though Juliana came with because her cousin had been put into that house too and she wanted to see him.

They'd all entered that dorm for the first time, amazed, and then Mick appeared. Juliana ran to her cousin, the one who was practically her brother, and hugged him, telling him about her summer cruise in the Caribbean, and Joy saw how Mara tensed, neither of them realizing at first that the pair were related. It was cleared up quickly, and Juliana met the gang, just as Amber entered with all her bags and things. They all exchanged numbers and emails, and then there was a cry of Alfie's name, and a tall blonde boy marched out of a room from the end of the hall and stormed towards the hall. He realized the big group, and even now, Joy could still remember the looks on Jerome and Juliana's faces when they first saw each other.

Not that Romeo and Juliet thing, but instead a look of obvious interest.

Joy hadn't thought it about it too much before, but it seemed a little clearer now Juliana may have liked Fabian before that. On the way to the house, they'd been holding hands. A quirk later dropped after being teased by the Anubis house for it, a quirk that been picked up in preschool because they hadn't wanted to get lost in the crowd on the way to recess.

"Different house back then. Then had the semester in France, and came back, to find you missing."

"Yeah. That." Joy smiled at Juliana. "Julie, a lot's happened here. Some good, some bad."

"Mick's gone, Nina's come and gone. KT is here…it seems like the world has begun to spin on another axis, huh?"

"It is 10 o'clock! Bed!" Victor boomed, and the two girls exchanged one final smile before hurrying to their rooms.

The next morning, Juliana woke up 20 minutes late. She got ready in a hurry, cursing her alarm for not going off, and hurried down the stairs, starving, eager for Trudy's breakfast when she saw Alfie storm out, Jerome chasing him into the foyer, but not following him out the door. They seemed to realize another person was in the room, and both paused to stare at each other. "Jillian." Jerome breathed. Juliana narrowed her eyes, glaring, and announced she wasn't hungry anymore and turned on her heel to head upstairs, but Jerome called out her name again and hurried after her, but her only acknowledgment of him was a look of exasperation towards him. Jerome caught up with her, grabbed her arm, but she, caught off guard, and began to fall down the stairs. Jerome caught her; however, they ended up both tumbling down the stairs. They ended up on the platform where the staircase turns in another direction, Jerome on the bottom, her on top, eyes squeezed tightly shut. Realizing they were both alive, they opened their eyes and their faces were mere centimeters from each other.

"You okay Jillian?" Jerome asked quietly, and Juliana nodded before asking him, since he had shielded her. "I'm fine." He shrugged it off.

Juliana's heart was thumping, one simple move, and they'd kiss. It was so tempting. How good it would be for Mara to come through and witness it. Sweet revenge.

But Juliana realized what she was doing there, and scrambled off the top of Jerome in a flash. She could never stoop as low as Mara, she wasn't that evil. As much as she wanted Mara to feel what she had felt last term, Juliana wasn't a cheater. She wouldn't be that girl. The girl who ruins relationships.

Juliana stood up, and headed down the final two steps and went to the dining room door before flipping around on Jerome and growling, "Jillian is dead. She died that day in the library. She's gone Clarke…" her voice softened a few degrees. "Let her go."

Juliana headed into the dining room then so she wouldn't have to see Jerome's face and took a breath. She'd said it. And now she could let Jillian go too.

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	36. Love Branches Out

Juliana was paired by Ms. Denby to work with Fabian and Joy for their project at the upcoming fair since with her there, the class was uneven. Joy glared at Juliana as Fabian excitedly smiled to Juliana and the two exchange a knowing look before looking back to the teacher. She claimed Fabian and she were only friends…but they seemed awfully cozy…Cozier than they seemed last year…Was it because Jerome and Nina were out of the picture? Would Juliana's crush from years ago suddenly return full force?

Joy groaned inwardly and for a split second as she glanced around the classroom, she could have sworn she saw Jerome glaring at Fabian. Joy had figured she better ask out Fabian before anything with Julie happened and so she wouldn't miss her chance once again, and she quickly headed out with Fabian after class.

Juliana gathered her books and was straightening up when she bumped into Jerome who was walking out of the room.

"Watch it!" she hissed, flipped her now darkened hair out of the way and bent down to retrieve her history notes when a once familiar hand brushed against hers. She looked up and Jerome was right in front of her, helping her.

She stared for a moment before Jerome stood up abruptly, seemingly red in the face and shoved her notes into her hands. "Sorry Jill- Juliana. My bad." He smiled halfheartedly and quickly left the class, calling after Mara to discuss something or whatever. Juliana had stood shocked for a moment, and then gathered her wits and headed to the rec. room where Joy and Fabian ought to have been, so they could discuss their topics and ideas. On the way there, instead of thinking of ideas, she thought of how pained Jerome had looked when he stopped in the middle of saying Jillian. Just as she was about to walk in, Joy ran out, Fabian calling after her. Juliana took one look at Joy who was crying, before chasing after her into the restroom.

"Joy, what happened?"

"He rejected me! He'll never think of me as more than just a friend. What did Nina have that I didn't?" Joy cried, trying not to look at her reflection in the mirror above the sink. Juliana looked straight into the mirror as Joy's back was turned on her, and saw how torn Joy was as she looked at herself.

Juliana stood there for a moment, selfishly feeling glad about this, and then she dropped her bag in astonishment. For a moment…

She went forward and embraced Joy, consoling her, but as Joy hugged her back, weeping, Juliana looked at her reflection, feeling something inside her wasn't right. How could she be so self-centered as her friend looked to her for comfort.

"Julie?" Joy looked to her silent friend tearfully and Juliana snapped her head to look back and smiled, as if the past moment hadn't happened, all the while, feeling confused and guilty…for reasons she wasn't too sure of herself.

To take her mind off of all of this Joy drama, Juliana went with the old Sibuna crew to the gatehouse that night to look for clues and symbols about this new mystery they were being sucked into. Juliana went upstairs with Amber, and before she knew it, they were locked in a stone circular room with a creepy frozen man in a machine as the centerpiece of the room. Juliana looked to Amber wide-eyed and gulped.

"They'll find us. They had to hide. They'll notice we're gone, and tomorrow they'll come and get us. It'll be fine. Fabian, Alfie, and Patricia wouldn't forget us. We're Sibuna." Juliana tried to make the situation hopeful as Amber slid to the floor and complained about how cold it was and how there was no food or clothes.

"We'll be stuck in here overnight. Do you have anything on you we could use as a blanket or pillow or-"

"No, I didn't plan on getting stuck in here overnight!"

"Amber, calm down! I told you already, they'll-"

"Poor Alfie." Amber moaned, putting her face in her hands. "Poor Fabian."

"Fabian? What's Fabian got to do with this?"

"You two are best friends. He'll be worrying about you all night. Why? Did you think I meant something more?"

Juliana went wide-eyed and quickly looked down, hoping the poor light quality wouldn't give her away. She thought that since Amber had put Fabian on the same level as Alfie for that moment she meant like…boyfriends or something. Not that Juliana liked Fabian that way, but still.

Juliana knew who she liked. And he wasn't single. And he didn't want her. She took a breath and bit her lip. "Do you have your phone?" she asked quietly.

"No. It's in my room." Amber groaned after checking. "I wanted to charge it."

Juliana shook her head. "No, it's fine…Let's just try to sleep or something. Night Amber."

The following morning, the two tried to find a way out of the room. They had pushed the statue to the door when they heard Ms. Denby coming in for lunch. They looked around, knowing there was no place to hide, and hid on opposite sides of the door, trying to press themselves against the wall, hoping they wouldn't be seen.

"Amber?" Ms. Denby questioned, and Juliana saw Amber pretend to faint and snuck out the door into the office. She debated running or hiding, and had hidden when she heard Ms. Denby coming downstairs to call Victor and Mr. Sweet.

When the two men came over and talked to Amber, she acted as if she knew nothing, and Juliana who had hidden down the hall in a dusty closet sneezed.

"What was that?" Victor paused and turned directly to the closet Juliana was in. Juliana panicked and tried to press herself deeper behind the coat rack, but she bumped into a pile of shoes and knocked them over. "Come out now, or you'll be punished with trespassing!" Victor boomed as he threw open the door and he spotted Juliana.

"Ms. Clarewell." He stated, and Juliana put a hand to her head and whispered, "I came looking for Amber due to her…sleepwalking issue lately, and someone stuck me in here. The door was locked and I couldn't get out…I was in here all night…" Juliana pretended to faint and Victor awkwardly caught her and looked to the others, not knowing what to do with this one.

"She is freezing…and she does look rather exhausted…could she be telling the truth?" Ms. Denby examined Juliana as Victor put her down beside Amber who was watching Juliana closely, knowing Juliana was completely awake at the moment, and had put up an even more convincing act than she had in that creepy room upstairs.

"Of course not…she's always running around with her little friends in Anubis House…I don't know who she managed to get into Anubis after all the trouble I took to get her into another house on campus the first time."

What?

Juliana decided it was a fine time to 'wake up' then, and dizzily sat up beside Amber, putting a hand to her hand and asking where she was.

She widened her eyes when she saw Amber sitting beside her somberly.

"Amber!" Juliana grinned and threw her arms around her friend. "I can't believe this sleepwalking business has gotten this bad!"

"Cut the act Juliana Clarewell. Now." Victor leaned in closer and seriously whispered to the both of them, "All your friends will disappear if you do not do as we say."

The girls gripped onto each other for support and gulped, straining to get as far from Victor as possible as they leaned back. "That Alfie…and especially you," he snapped his glare to Juliana. "Those boys…Mr. Rutter and Mr. Clarke, right? They will be expelled from this school and you will never see them again if you do not follow us."

Of course the girls had no choice but to comply. Juliana should've escaped when she had the chance. Victor let Juliana return to the house before Mr. Millington got there with Mr. Sweet.

Juliana stayed in her room just as Victor demanded, and only went downstairs for a late dinner and as she passed by her dorm mates on the way to the kitchen she heard Jerome ask, "Why does everyone always assume it was me who did something wrong? I need to hang out with people who don't know me."

Juliana snickered and Jerome glanced up to his ex. "You obviously don't realize how sickening you are." Juliana muttered, so only Jerome would hear and he seemed more shocked than angry at the statement, but he said nothing. He just stared for a moment sadly before resuming his chat with Mara as if nothing had happened.

KT and Joy went into the kitchen as Juliana was forced to listen to Mara and Jerome talk and grew more and more forceful as she spread jelly over her bread.

"Is she okay?" KT pointed at Juliana was practically attacking her sandwich, muttering snide comments to herself as Jerome and Mara were all lovey-dovey.

"No she's fine. Brits don't like to show they care. And she cares about Jerome more than she cares to let on. She pretends she's moved on, but she's still in love with him."

"They dated?" KT whispered back, so Juliana wouldn't hear.

"Before Jerome cheated on her…with his now current girlfriend…Never did trust him much anyway. Why do you think she always comes and gets dinner late around this time every night? So she doesn't have to take her usual seat across from Jerome like she used to. She can't stomach any food while watching Mara and Jerome across from her."

The sound of silverware clattered to the counter, and Juliana spun around.

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't talk about my personal life with KT if that's alright with you." Juliana snapped, cleaned up, and headed upstairs with her sandwich, just after Victor had announced Amber was leaving.

"Alfie, now Juliana." Fabian muttered, and ran after his friend, practically bounding up the stairs to confront her about what Joy had said.

Joy groaned. "Great. She'll vent about how terrible I am and he'll hate me more. Just what I need."

"Are they currently going out?" KT asked, confused.

"No. They might as well be. They've been best friends for as long as they can remember. They've been attached at the hip since they were babies."

KT nodded, sensing there was more to this Joy-Fabian-Juliana-Jerome-Mara thing then any of the five would be willing to let on, but let it slide.

That night, Juliana lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling when her phone beeped with a text message. She grabbed it off her nightstand without even looking and held it up to read the message.

"Meet in school…unknown…" Juliana thought about it for a moment, before going to retrieve her shoes. She got downstairs, caught up with the Sibuna group, who had also received the message and headed towards the school.

"Stay behind me." Fabian warned to the group as they headed down the empty hallway and gripped Juliana's hand tightly and protectively, and Juliana let him, not seeing much weird about it…until Patricia commented on it and the two broke apart and continued on. They also joined up with Eddie and KT in the rec. room and for a moment there was confusion but then Amber appeared.

It had been Amber who called them all there, and she explained everything, even the stuff with Juliana…but Juliana noticed how Amber conveniently left out the part about Victor threatening all of them. Juliana hugged Amber, and Amber gave Juliana a look as though warning her not to tell the rest of the truth. They group wanted to head to the gatehouse, but Juliana ran back to the house to get her phone in case something happened once again, and just as she got upstairs she saw Jerome's figure outside Mara and Joy's room as he apologized for some fight from earlier. "I'm arrogant, selfish, and I can't believe I hurt you. I can't believe I hurt my little beanie bob." Juliana froze for a moment, listening, and then realized she heard something she wasn't meant to hear and escaped down the staircase and back out the door to the staircase, hoping Victor wouldn't notice she'd already broken her house arrest. She met up with the group just as Fabian, KT, and Eddie were about to head upstairs to the creepy chamber once more as Patricia and Alfie provided a distraction.

They got upstairs, and KT confronted Fabian at the wrong time about Fabian knowing about her key as Eddie and Juliana angrily tried to get them to look for clues so they could get out fast.

Fabian said something to KT that set her off, pushed him into that frozen man in the machine, which in turn toppled on top of Eddie and Juliana. The pair had turned, about to yell at the two for being stupid, and then they were crushed under the machine.

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	37. Another Lovely Addition

Well, almost crushed.

"Woah!" Eddie sounded and managed to catch the sleeper and with Juliana's help, managed to push him back up into the original position.

"We need to get out of here, now." Juliana sounded, and the others nodded.

"Let's go." Eddie ordered, and the four escaped the gatehouse undetected.

Juliana looked back at the gatehouse as the others ran and a look of worry crossed her face. Why did she feel something horrible was about to happen to the Anubis boarders? If anything ever happened to her friends…If anyone ever tried to harm Jerome or Fabian…

"Julie? What are you doing? C'mon!"

Juliana turned to the source of the voice and saw Fabian waiting for her, grinning, and out of breath. She smiled, remembering all those years ago how he would wait for her after school under the trees, and then the trend continued as they found each other at one another's lockers in between every class later on. Of course then Anubis came, and there was Nina and Jerome…but that smile, the way he waited for her, hand extended out to her…it was as if Nina or Jerome has never existed, and Juliana found herself thinking the way she had when she was 12…if only for a split second. She remembered how Mick used to tease her, and say how Fabian was always a much better match for her than Jerome would ever be…But that was her thickheaded jock of a cousin, who she loved, but was bad at the romance thing, despite dating Amber and Mara.

"Alright." She called back to him and jogged over, and grabbed his hand, and the two of the ran to catch up with Eddie and KT, laughing like they were 5 years old all over again.

They went back to the gatehouse all too soon though, and one of the boys had the bright idea to try to lift up the cover around Smithe's head, and then a shrill alarm rang out.

Fabian automatically covered Juliana's ears and bent down with her to try to block out the sound. They bumped foreheads and Fabian let go of her and then placed his hands over his own ears sheepishly.

"Sorry, old habit." He smiled, embarrassed. It was an old habit indeed. There had been an alarm at the primary school once, and they were in the same class, like every year (they hadn't been separated until he was put in Anubis house and she wasn't) and she got so scared, thinking a gunman really had entered the school, so to shield her from the outside world, he took her into his arms and covered her ears with his hands and sat there with the little Juliana quivering for what was probably seconds, but felt like years to a child.

Eddie and KT managed to stop the alarm, and they once again, all bolted out of the gatehouse, afraid of being caught.

They got to the school, only for an announcement calling their history class to the rec. room. They entered, curious and a tad confused, to see Jerome up on the stage, ready for his presentation…which ended up being a shallow attempt to win Mara back.

Juliana stared straight ahead and tried to block out Jerome's words. "I don't work properly without you. I need you by my side. You're the most amazing girl I've ever met. I messed up." But after he handed over the flowers, Juliana knew she had to get out of there before she screamed at them, or cried, or both.

She pushed her chair back and stumbled out of the room angrily; wanting to make sure she wouldn't cry. She wouldn't be a victim anymore, so she couldn't cry. She'd done too much of that last term.

People filed out of the rec. room right after, and as she bolted into the girls room she heard Fabian calling after her.

"Joy, can you go in the girls room and coax Julie out? She ran out after that stunt Jerome pulled-"

Juliana was staring at her reflection in the mirror when Joy entered.

"Annie? I was walking by and saw Fabian waiting by the door, and he told me to come to talk to you…are you okay? He's really worried about you." Joy wondered how come, all of a sudden, Juliana and Fabian seemed so close. They had been best friends forever, but Sibuna and the time apart and Nina and Jerome definitely distanced themselves from the other for a while but…now they seemed tighter than ever, and Joy was suspicious. But she didn't say anything about that.

"What? No I'm fine. Tell Fabian I'm fine. I can't let him worry about me like this. It's silly."

"Then let's go outside, or he'll wait there all day." Joy knew not to mention Jerome, by the way Juliana's throat seemed tight, as if she were trying not to sob.

Juliana laughed and followed her friend out. Fabian breathed a sigh of relief and the two headed off. Joy watched and then Jerome walked by, noticed Joy and grinned evilly.

"Just saw Fabian. How are things between you two? Oh, that's right, there is no you and Fabian."

Joy's rage boiled up to the surface and she snapped back, "But it looks like there may be a Juliana and Fabian thing soon."

Jerome's carefree laughter ceased at once and he snapped his head towards Joy, an intense look in his eyes. "What?" he asked.

Joy smiled, realizing Jerome still had feelings for Jerome, and sauntered off, not telling Jerome anything else.

That night, Eddie was sneaking out to visit the mental hospital, when Sibuna caught him the act.

Juliana had heard movements coming from downstairs, being a light sleeper, so she slipped on some shoes and grabbed a sweater and rushed out of her room to the staircase. And sure enough there was Eddie.

"Eddie." Juliana whispered, heading down the stairs. "Where are you going?"

Fabian and the others appeared then and Eddie explained his plan.

"I'm going with you. No way are you going alone." Juliana shook her head.

"Then we're going too." Fabian and Patricia put in. The others shrugged, and they all headed out. They got past the gatehouse and noticed Patricia was no longer with them.

"I have to see if she's okay. You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up." Juliana gently smiled at her friends, and despite KT and Fabian's objections, she went back alone anyway.

She jogged around the gatehouse, not seeing Patricia, and wondered if anyone was at the school…it would be best to leave no cornerstone unturned. Juliana sighed and ran to the school, looking around, keeping an eye out for her friend. In the rec. room of the school she heard voices, so she continued closer, wondering if Denby caught Patricia and brought her there. But as she got closer she realized it was Jerome in his detention for that stunt he'd pulled with his history project.

"What was it like…dating Juliana and Mara?" Willow asked curiously. Juliana jumped and began to eavesdrop, curious as to what he had to say on the subject.

"It was definitely relationship royalty…with the two best girls on earth…Mara is smart and pretty and she understand me…but then there's Jillian…or rather Juliana, as apparently Jillian is dead now, but she's…she's something else. She's intriguing…she's intelligent, and cute…she understands me just as much as Mara does, if not more…I never planned on hurting her. But a little birdy told me she likes Fabian or something." Why did he sound so…hurt? Jerome took a deep breath.

"They would be so cute together!" Willow squeed.

Jerome froze. "No they wouldn't, Fabian should date Nina, the American girl. That's how it's supposed to be! They aren't supposed to be together!...I mean…" Jerome recollected himself and continued. "If she really likes him, I'm happy for her…he's a much better person for her. I destroyed her after all...all her innocence is gone. I called a dozen times over the break, and her mother kept telling me that Jillian didn't want to speak to me at the moment, and that Fabian was over. Apparently they mostly chatted about Nina, but her mother didn't fail to point out how Fabian had been there for Jillian since they were kids, whereas I had failed to be a proper boyfriend."

"Sounds complicated." Willow observed. Jerome let out an anxious laugh.

"Complicated? Yeah, you don't know the half of it…But there's Mara…and now I'm messing that up too." He groaned and Willow comforted him.

Juliana never knew Jerome had called. She always assumed it was Dad calling from the office or something. She never paid attention to it. Instead she tried to help Fabian with his long-distance relationship with Nina. Could she really like Fabian like that? He was her best friend. She didn't like him like that…not since Jerome had she even so looked at Fabian like…like she wanted to be more than friends. God, if Nina were around, it would be much less confusing.

Juliana remembered her mission, and darted away from the rec. room, continuing her search for Patricia, trying to clear her head as she ran.

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**Okay, this chapter took way too long to put up, sorry about that. I had a ton of stuff going on these past 2 months. Just a quick question, are the any hardcore Fabina shippers still lingering around the show? I mean, Nina's out of HOA for good because Nathalia went to school, but would anyone cry foul if Fabian engaged in any sort of romance with any of the characters in this story?**

**Also, who has been reading since the very beginning? Way back when I first began this story? PM about it, and I'll dedicate the next few chapters to those who have stuck with me over the years...**

**One final thing- Season 3 was AWESOME! I pray it's not the end, but I will try to catch up with the show in terms of the story this weekend! But don't forget to REVIIEWWWW!**


	38. The Biggest Mistake

Jerome and Mara made up. Gag. Juliana had the luck to walk in at the exact moment the pair kissed. Juliana saw them together, wondered about what Jerome had said the previous night to Willow, and then turned and walked straight back out into the hall, into Eddie.

"Sorry Jewel." He apologized.

She laughed. "It's fine." She lowered her voice. "I'm glad none of us got in major trouble last night. Even Patricia turned up okay."

Eddie nodded. "Definitely. Hey do you know where Fabian and KT and Patricia are anyway? I want to go into the tunnels and check something out."

"No idea…when are you going to fill me in on what happened at the mental place last night anyhow? None of you explained anything to me."

"On the way. C'mon. Let's round up the gang."

They found Alfie first, and then managed to get everyone else.

"Why are going now? It's still school." KT pointed out.

"That's why it's the best time. No one's around." Juliana clarified and they all walked on.

They ended up in a crypt, and bats fluttered their wings and soared above them, freaking Juliana out, and she cowered into Fabian's chest.

Another fear of hers, bats. She had gone camping with Fabian and Amber once, and while Amber complained about nature, Juliana was freaking out over the bats. Maybe it was Fabian's fault, for telling Juliana vampire stories at their sleepovers in primary school.

They were stuck in the crypt.

"We can only hope Alfie and Patricia will rescue us." Eddie sighed, sitting down next to KT, and noticed she was freezing. He took his jacket off and placed it over her shoulders. He looked across the room to see how the others were doing and noticed Juliana sleeping soundly, her head resting on Fabian's shoulder, his coat draped over her as a blanket.

Eddie met eyes with Fabian and sighed, looking towards the entrance of the crypt, waiting for help to come. Which did come thanks to Alfie.

Juliana stood and gave the jacket back over to Fabian and smiled awkwardly at him before leaving first. There was a Sibuna meeting later, but Juliana avoided it, instead focusing on all her homework and projects for the next week and a half. At about 8, she realized she'd forgotten her literature textbook in her locker, and headed to the school to retrieve it.

She was only doing it to avoid Sibuna though. She didn't know why, but she just didn't feel like going. Maybe because without Nina and Amber things just weren't the same. She heard noises coming from the rec. room again after she got her book and peeked in to look, and came across Jerome and Willow kissing.

She dropped her book in shock, causing the pair to break apart and look in her direction. Juliana sprinted away before they could see her though, leaving her book behind.

Jerome crossed over to the doorway and noticed the textbook on the floor. He picked up and studied it, then looked out into the hall, wondering how the book had gotten there…if anyone had seen. But he put the book into his bookbag, shrugging, and went back to Willow.

Juliana was sprinting across campus, thoughts racing through her head, hurting both her head and her heart.

"He's cheating on Mara…" she rasped as she came to rest against a tree to catch her breath. She shut her eyes. Jerome wasn't worth it after all…he was cheating again…and this time he didn't have the excuse of his girlfriend suffering from a case of amnesia to protect him.

She felt her neck and felt no chain. She remembered she no longer wore the necklace. Juliana wondered where it had gone. Had she destroyed it in her whirlwind of rage when she broke up with Jerome? Did she throw it at him or something? Did Rufus steal it? She honestly couldn't remember, and not knowing made her uncomfortable. It felt like the past few months were just a dream without it…but then again, maybe Mara had it, or now, Willow…Jerome seemed to get around pretty fast all of a sudden.

"I'm supposed to hate him. To hate Mara…but why does it hurt so much?" Julian moaned, clutching at her chest, her emotions getting the better of her. "Now Mara's just like me…used."

Unable to stand in the darkness for another moment, she continued back to the house, running straight into Fabian in the lobby.

"Hey Julie!" Fabian smiled and then noticed how Juliana was crying, cursing herself for breaking down after she promised herself she wouldn't be a crybaby anymore. Bad things just kept coming her way, and she couldn't stop it. "Julie, what's wrong?" She ignored him and traveled past him down the hall. "Ana? Juliana!" he grabbed her arm and spun her around to face him. "What's wrong?"

Juliana picked up her head and searched Fabian's clear eyes, seeing herself reflect in his worried gaze. She was unsure of what she should say to him, so she didn't say anything. Instead, she pulled Fabian's head closer to hers and kissed him, her saltwater tears mixing in with the kiss.

And to her immense surprise, while Fabian's hands were on top of hers as if he were ready to pull her off, he didn't push her away. She pulled back and stared at him for a minute. Then the weight of what she had just done hit her. If Nina or Joy or Amber had seen them just then…She stared doe-eyed into the face of her best friend. She'd just kissed her best friend…because she'd seen her ex-boyfriend cheating on the girl he had cheated on her with…Was she so selfish as to do that? Fabian loved Nina…so why had she…

"I…" Juliana blanked on what to say. "I…I should go." She got out, and then she sprinted up the stairs, afraid of what he would say if she stayed there.

Fabian didn't reply, and Juliana bolted into her room and locked the door behind her. She ran her hand through her red-brown hair and then practically collapsed onto her bed. What if Fabian hated her tomorrow?

She headed downstairs the next morning, jumpy and afraid of the fact Fabian would walk in for breakfast at any minute.

She walked past Jerome and paused to whisper to him, "You know, I don't hide things about myself from others…you should be more careful Jerome. You never know whose watching." Then she continued to her seat.

Jerome grabbed her arm to stop her from sitting and looking her in the eye whispered back, "So you know."

Juliana stared back into his eyes, wishing he wasn't paying attention to her for the wrong reasons. She yanked her wrist out of his grip and nodded, not knowing what else to do. "Yeah I do…now I know it was never my fault…you're just a two-timing jerk." She glared at him and sat down to breakfast, wanting to eat as fast as possible to avoid Fabian, and Jerome walked out of the room, running his hand through his hair.

Victor then entered and announced he was searching for the bracelet…the bracelet Amber used to have, the one that was a clue to the mystery. Fabian overheard Victor's announcement as he entered the room for breakfast. Juliana immediately stood up then, and exited in her hurry to escape him.

"Jill…Juliana wait!" she heard from behind her as she got ready to go over to the school.

She rolled her eyes, knowing only one person called her Jillian. She lazily turned around and noticed him holding out her lit. book for her to take back.

"My book." She murmured absent-mindedly, and reached out to grab it back.

He passed it over to her, careful not to touch her hands with his, as if he didn't want to step on a land-mine or something.

"I found it last night." He explained. "I figured it was yours, but I wasn't sure." He shrugged, looking at the textbook now in her hands. He snapped his gaze up to her face and studied her for a moment. Juliana blinked and raised an eyebrow. "Yes?" she pressed, wanting this uncomfortable exchange to end.

"I know it's a little late for this, and you don't have to forgive me or anything, but I need you to listen."

"Jerome I-" she shifted her weight to her other leg anxiously, shaking her head, looking down.

"Juliana." He said softly and Juliana looked up at him then.

"I'm sorry I hurt you. I never planned on hurting you…and last night…I wasn't planning on hurting Mara…I just keep messing up-"

"Yeah, you do." She agreed bluntly.

He sighed. "You're amazing Juliana…I still-"

"Stop right there." She held her hand up to silence him. "I know what you're going to say, and there's no point. Maybe I would've agreed after that kiss in the library last term, but now…you made your choice, and I'm not going to wait around for you anymore Jerome…maybe it's about time we both just forgot each other…Man, things would've been so much easier if I'd never remembered you."

"So we can't even attempt to go back to how we used to be before you even left for France?" he seemed so let down.

She laughed incredulously. "After all we've been through? Definitely not. It would be a weak attempt at best. Plus, going back to the times when we liked each other and did nothing about it wouldn't help any. I think you should just leave me alone Jerome. The girl you used to know isn't here anymore. And you better make up your mind about Willow or Mara…because I'm letting you get away with it. No one is going to a victim because of you ever again." She turned her back to him and left, leaving Jerome wanting to chase her, but then his situation would just be even worse. Jerome wanted to punch something…Juliana hated him…that was clear to him now.

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	39. A Plan Foiled?

"Julie! Julie, we need to talk." Fabian caught up to her before they entered class.

"Can we just forget anything ever happened? It was a mistake. You love Nina, I know. I'm sorry. You're my best friend, and I shouldn't have messed it up. I get it-"

"Juliana, we're still best friends. You haven't ruined anything." He grinned and Juliana breathed a sigh of relief.

"Good….good." she managed, a relieved smile creeping up on her face.

"Now c'mon, we're going to bring Frobisher to the crypt. The others are going to the gatehouse, let's get a move on!" he took her hand and pulled her along, and Juliana looked back, knowing Denby would kill them all for cutting class. She watched Fabian as they ran, wondering why he hadn't said anything about the kiss, but figured it was probably for the best and continued on.

They got Frobisher on a gurney and placed a sheet over him and began to head for the crypt when Trudy showed up. Fabian pretended to hurt his hand and Trudy took care of him while the others hurried with the gurney down to the crypt.

And like last time, Fabian, KT, Eddie, and Juliana found themselves locked in the crypt. Smithe didn't wake up after that chant, and the group was at a loss as to what to do next. They later heard voices outside the main entrance and they all quickly locked the door, hoping the adults wouldn't get in. Denby seemed the most desperate to get to Frobisher though, as when Patricia and Alfie set off the fire alarm, Victor and Sweet left, but Denby kept at it, trying to get in.

And she eventually did. KT and Eddie hid on the opposite side of the tomb from Fabian and Juliana as Denby took back Robert, and she snatched up a clue that Eddie hadn't managed to pick up before she noticed.

"What do we do now?" Juliana hissed to Eddie, worried.

"We'll have to get it back." Eddie concluded and the girls looked at him as if he had three heads.

"Well duh. Now Sherlock, any ideas on how to make that happen?" Juliana raised an eyebrow and just then, Alfie burst in to their rescue.

"Let's get out of here first." KT told Juliana, and the five all headed back to Anubis House.

Willow and Joy were there to greet them accidently, as they walked in when the pair was leaving for school, and Willow asked how Fabian was doing with his hand.

Juliana watched this exchange and was just as confused as Fabian had been until it was made clear his hand was supposed to hurt. Then she almost burst out into laughter at how silly the conversation seemed to become.

The day passed with no upsetting events, until Eddie discovered that KT wasn't the descendant- they were Joy, Alfie, Patricia, and Jerome.

Denby managed to trick Joy and Jerome by telling them they were about to lose their scholarships to the school if they didn't do some project with her.

Juliana remembered Jerome was there on scholarship, and realized just how smart Jerome really was all over again. Not everyone was like her or Fabian or Eddie who had connections or had enough money to go to school there without a scholarship.

"We're too late then." KT shook her head, as if already mourning these four peers.

"No, we can't be." Juliana breathed, and turned around to race out ahead of them. She sprinted to the gatehouse, her only thoughts was her fear for Jerome. Why did something bad always have to happen to him?

She knew the others were chasing after her, and she could hear Eddie calling for her.

_"I see your date has left you without a dance…do you want a replacement?"_

_"Jerry will come around. Do you want me to take you back to the house? I'll make pancakes, my special ones- best comfort food you'll ever see."_

Eddie was always there for her. He, more so than any of her other friends seemed to take care of Juliana the most when it came to Jerome. She sort of wished they could go back to the days when Eddie was simply Ederson, and Jerome was Jerry, and they despised each other, leaving Juliana on the sidelines to stand up for Jerome when need be.

But she didn't stop for him. He hadn't been there when Rufus almost drained Jerome's life force through the cup of ankh.

Juliana saw the door closing as Jerome, Joy, and Denby entered the gatehouse, and ignoring the yells for her, she snuck up to the door and slipped in just as the door shut, leaving the rest of Sibuna stranded outside.

She heard voices at the top of the stairs and found herself creeping up the steps to get an idea as to what Denby was planning.

Just as she got to the top, a stair creaked and she heard Denby claim it was simply a rat in the wall, and went out into the hall to take care of it. Juliana looked around, but unless she jumped from the second story, over the railing to the ground floor, she wouldn't get to hiding place in time. Just as she was about to move, Denby spotted her and smirked, causing a chill to go up Juliana's spine.

"I found the rat." Denby leered and Juliana found herself shrinking back, afraid of what was going to happen to her. "Come, let's get you something to drink." Denby told Juliana, yanking her arm to go with her down the hall to a closed door.

She pulled out her keys, unlocked it, and threw Juliana in the closet. "That makes one brat down. I'll let Robert decide what to do with you once he awakens." Denby said before the door closed and locked once more, isolating Juliana in complete darkness. She felt around for a light, but the switch must have been right outside the door, so she couldn't even see her surroundings.

If she screamed for help, would anyone hear her? Would they pay attention or simply ignore it?

She slumped down against the door, her heart beating wildly. What would happen to her if she stayed in here until the ceremony was over? Make her work for the evil side? Would Denby kill her?

Her eyes went wide at the thought and she stood immediately. She couldn't let herself be a sitting duck. She banged on the door, screaming for help, not caring anymore what Denby may do to her.

"Help!" she shrieked over and over until her voice got hoarse. She pounded on the wooden door in the darkness, hoping someone would rescue her.

"Juliana!" she heard faintly from down the hall.

She went quiet for a moment. Jerome. He had heard her. "Jerome! Over here!"

She heard him draw nearer and he jiggled the lock. "Where are the keys?" he asked and looked around, spotting them conveniently on the side table next to them.

The door opened then and in the light was her ex-boyfriend.

"Jerome." She whispered and threw herself into his arms, quivering.

He tossed the keys back onto its spot on the side table and held her, trying to soothe her. "How long were you in there?"

She shrugged. "Maybe a half hour? An hour? Denby locked me in. She said...she said she'd deal with me later…I got so scared Jerome." She clutched at Jerome's shirt and Jerome kissed her hair and proceeded to tell her he'd hide her in a different room, safe from Denby. He then shut the door behind Juliana closed, and they walked down the hall to the desk. He hid her in the closet right there, telling the others to keep quiet about it, but trying to convince them all to escape. Then Victor arrived, along with Sweet , as Denby returned to the room. Victor threatened each of the descendants as he handed out robes for them all to wear.

"Sir, I don't think-" Jerome injected as he held the robe, and Victor silenced him.

"Do you really want to hurt that girl? Ms. Juliana Clarewell, was it? I thought you two had some great affection for one another…and she is your friend, is she not?" Victor turned to the other descendants. "Shame is something were to happen to her…some sort of fatal accident, maybe?" he smirked and Denby shared a look with him. So Victor knew Denby had caught Juliana.

Denby then implied that if they didn't wear the robes that bad things would happen to their families, and that frightened the others even more.

"This may be one of the most memorable days of your school life!" Sweet urged them to participate, but Patricia said it could be the last.

The four were then pulled into a circle around the sleeper when the four tried to run.

"Jillian! C'mon!" Jerome managed as he headed to the elevator. Juliana sprang out and managed to get into the elevator with him as the adults already had their hands full with the others.

"We may just get out of here alive." Juliana looked up at the ceiling as they headed down, but then there was an earth-shaking rumble as the elevator was forced back up.

Juliana fell into Jerome and stayed there, afraid of what was waiting for them back at the top.

"Spoke too soon." He whispered above her, and she nodded mutely.

"Welcome back." Victor told them as they stepped out of the elevator.

Sweet handed out blindfolds which the teens refused to wear and Denby told them to do it, or Juliana may just…fall down the elevator shaft or something, and they regretfully put the masks over their eyes.

"Cover your eyes now girl and look away unless you want to lose your eyesight." Denby snapped at Juliana so Juliana looked away and shut her eyes, praying Sibuna would pull through, just as they always did.

After a few minutes of the torture, Eddie and KT burst in, and managed to throw a vital piece to the ceremony in the elevator shaft, with KT pressing the button to bring the elevator downstairs, shouting for Fabian to go.

Juliana stood and ran over to the Sibuna, hugging KT and Eddie tightly.

"Get out, all of you. Get out!" he screamed and all of them headed down the stairs.

Jerome burst out ahead of them, probably to try and protect his lies, as she figured out; Joy had sent an email to Mara and Willow. Joy had told her actually, saying Jerome was even worse than she had thought, because he had cheated twice now. But Juliana thought of how Jerome seemed so focused on her back at the gatehouse, and while she didn't want Jerome to get away with the cheating, she thought he wasn't horrible. He still cared about her, obviously. But, that wasn't her business anymore. Any of this Mara-Jerome-Willow stuff.

They all sprinted back to the house and then Fabian, out of breath, asked, "What happened back there?"

"We stopped it!" Alfie yelled out in excitement, and Joy headed upstairs.

"You guys did it! We did it!" Juliana hugged Fabian and headed with him and Alfie down the hall to celebrate. She hoped that it would be the end…thinking nothing could get worse than what had already happened over the last few terms, but she didn't know at the time just how completely wrong she could be.

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	40. Forgiveness

The Sibunas headed over to the school, and found themselves in a room with the adults.

"Is everything alright here?" Juliana asked innocently.

It was deathly silent for a moment and Eddie looked over to his father, waiting for an explanation.

"I'm afraid…the bunch of you have been expelled from this school." Mr. Sweet swallowed and avoided his son's hurt and shocked expression.

Juliana grabbed onto Fabian's jacket and gripped it, freaking out. And if she was hyperventilating…she looked up to see Fabian completely still. She knew he was internally screaming though. What would their parents say? Why were they being expelled? Especially Fabian, he was a top student.

"Sir, there must be some mistake-" Juliana tried but Sweet had none of it.

"Go and pack." He cut her off and whispered the words, rubbing his nose with two fingers, exhausted.

"But-"

"Now!" he exclaimed, and the Sibunas rushed out, almost in tears.

"Jill- Juliana, what's going on? Where are you are going? We have class in a few minutes." Jerome caught them on the way out and stopped Juliana. Fabian stopped too and was about to stand in between the pair and drag Juliana away from the tall prankster, but Juliana pushed him on.

"I'll meet you back at the house." She promised. Fabian studied her for a moment, glanced at Jerome, then stared at Juliana again, and nodded.

"Call me the second anything happens." He told her, and rushed away, his mouth drawn tight into a straight-lined frown. Juliana noticed how his hands were balled into fists and Juliana wanted to ditch Jerome and chase after Fabian. He was a genius. Expulsion didn't happen to people like him. He probably needed his best friend more than ever, and she was ditching him.

She faced Jerome and sighed. She opened her mouth to explain and found she couldn't speak. She swallowed and tried again, but now tears blurred her vision.

Jerome sensed her sadness, from experience no doubt, and took her into his arms.

She wrapped her arms around him and managed, "We've all been expelled. Fabian, Eddie, Alfie, Patricia, KT, and me."

"Because of earlier? You guys saved everyone though! They've never gone this far before."

Juliana shook her head and buried her face in Jerome's shoulder. It was hopeless. She didn't know what the adults were thinking. So she just stayed in Jerome's arms for a little while longer, and it felt like they were friends again, if only for a few minutes.

While she was packing later, she pulled out that picture of her, Mara, and Jerome from the bottom drawer. There was a knock at the door and she glanced back to find Mara in the doorway, smiling sadly down at Juliana in front of her luggage on the floor.

"I remember that." Mara came in, and Juliana followed her gaze to the photo she was holding.

"Oh yeah…this." She sighed. That was way back before Eddie came to the school, before Rufus came back, when Jerome was still hers…before the summer term began.

"Seems like a long time ago doesn't it?" Mara sat down on Juliana's former bed and looked at the photo again.

"You have no idea." Juliana laughed and Mara joined in. Once the awkward laughter died down, it was silent for a moment as Juliana put the photo down and stood up.

Mara stood with her and suddenly blurted out, "I'm sorry Julie."

Juliana was taken aback and blinked at Mara. "For what?" she asked.

"For hurting you. You're Mick's cousin, you were Jerome's girlfriend. I had no excuse to go and hurt you over and over again last term. We all knew how much you loved Jerome, even before you two went out…and I ignored it…I should've realized that if he cheated with me, he'd cheat on me too…I swear though, that kiss you saw pictures of- that was to make Mick jealous. I knew you and him were still stepping out…I did feel so guilty about liking that kiss though. But then you two were broken up and I was…I was happy. I felt awful. You have been one of my best friends over the years and I was breaking the girl code! And now I know he's a scumbag. He can't take all the blame though for your breakup. I know I played a huge role in it. And I'm so sorry Julie. Can we ever go back to the way we all were, back in the beginning?" Mara seemed so hurt, so honest, and it obviously took a lot to say all that…Juliana had declined Jerome's offer to be friends again…but this was Mara. Her friend. And now that Mara knew the pain…it was okay. She wondered how she found out, but she didn't care. She just nodded and moved to embrace Mara.

The two girls stood there, smiling and apologizing to each other over and over for no reason.

"I'm sorry it took until your last night to tell you this." Mara sighed, but Juliana shook her head.

"It's fine."

"Do you know why you're being expelled? They have to have a reason or they could get in major trouble with the school governors." Mars asked, eyes wide.

Juliana shook her head again and Mara frowned.

"We'll fix this…I promise. You all belong here, in Anubis house…We'll find a way…" and with that, Mara was gone.

Juliana turned back to her things, a new smile on her face as she packed everything. She saved the picture for last and put it on top of everything neatly, glad she patched things up with Mara before she left.

Juliana got downstairs to find everyone there, all saying their goodbyes to the others.

Eddie and KT had a flight to catch, Patricia and Alfie had taxi's to take, and Juliana and Fabian had to take the train home together, since they lived so near to one another it only made sense.

When Juliana got to Jerome on the goodbye line, she stared up into Jerome's face and he just pulled her close as she finally cried. They rocked back and forth, holding each other for a long time, and just breathed in each other's scents, no words exchanged. But they both knew that it was the end…possibly the last time they'd ever see each other with how estranged the pair had become in a matter of months.

"You all can stay, the expulsion has been…revoked…on all accounts." Victor grumbled as he entered and climbed the stairs.

Everyone, including Trudy, broke out into cheers and laughs and high-fives.

"We can stay!" Juliana hugged Patricia to her and then the other Sibunas. They all grinned knowingly at one another and Trudy said she'd make some cookies to celebrate, so all the teens followed her into the kitchen, chattering and excited for some celebration food.

Willlow, Mara, and Joy pulled Juliana aside during the snack and explained the whole disaster with Jerome, and then proceeded to tell her about their revenge plan.

"Awesome. When do we start?" Juliana spoke in between drinking her soda.

The girls looked around at one another, smirking, glad Juliana was on board in one go.

That night, after putting everything away, and putting her photo on her shelf, displaying it proudly as a good memory, and putting her sheets back on the bed, Juliana had just gotten changed into her pajamas when Mara sprinted into her room and sputtered that Joy and Patricia were sleeptalking and being extremely weird.

Juliana headed into the other room to find the girls sitting up in bed, chanting, staring straight ahead at nothing. Juliana thought what it could be, and then realized the two of them were the descendants…and that meant…

Juliana sprinted out the room and headed downstairs to Jerome and Alfie's room at the end of the corridor without so much as a second thought. She burst in to find Fabian and Eddie there, trying to snap the boys out of it.

"Mara woke me up…Trixie and Joy are like this too." Juliana breathed and crossed over to Jerome. She'd agreed to get revenge on him, but Juliana still cared about him immensely. And he obviously still cared for her too.

"Jerome." She shook him but he didn't respond. He always responded to her. "Jerome, wake up." She shook him harder, and sat on the bed and stared directly into his eyes. But he seemed to stare through her, as if she wasn't even there and he kept chanting. "Jerome please!" she whispered, her voice getting more and more panicked as he continued to ignore her. She felt so helpless to help him, and that feeling was worse than any other. There was footsteps coming closer and the three awake Sibunas hid. Juliana hid under Jerome's bed and waited for whoever came in to leave. After the person left, the three realized it had been Frobisher…and that they had failed in their mission on the eclipse. It only meant one thing…Frobisher was Team Evil now.

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	41. New Ties

KT found the secret room, and sports day arrived. Juliana walked into breakfast, feeling oddly cheerful, putting all thoughts of Team Evil firmly out of her mind, and poured herself a glass of orange juice. She overheard Jerome and Joy planning their date and while Juliana knew it was for the revenge plot, something about it felt off to Juliana. But she dismissed it as stupid jealousy and let it go.

"Julie, are you ready to go?" Mara asked, walking in a few minutes later. Juliana nodded and finished eating her blueberry muffin, then followed Mara out to head over to the school. Jerome stared after the giggling pair for a moment. They hadn't been close in a long time…Joy called out to him and he snapped his attention to her. "We should get going too Joy." He stood up with a smile, but when her back was turned to him, he looked back towards the door where he had seen Juliana moments before and frowned slightly, a little downcast.

Juliana and Mara sat down on the bleachers and by the time Willow joined them, the school mascot sat down in front of them.

"Fabes?" Juliana cried out in disbelief and Fabian yanked off the head to the costume, and turned to the girls. Juliana put her hand to her mouth to stifle a laugh and then moved forward to fix his hair as when his hair was sticking up all over the place because of the suit.

"Oh, thanks." Fabian smiled at her once she pulled back and Juliana nodded a you're welcome back to him.

"Better put the head back on if you don't want everyone to know it's you in there." Juliana told him and he agreed, shoving the top back on as the games began.

She sat back and Mara raised an eyebrow at Juliana. "What?" Juliana asked innocently.

"Julie…this is how you used to be around Jerome, right before you went out with him." Mara reminded her.

"Really? Does that mean Julie-" Willow began, but Juliana cut her off.

"No way. We're best friends, that's all."

Mara lowered her voice to a whisper, "Julie, there is no Nina, no Jerome, no Joy to get in the way anymore. You could totally go for it." Without waiting for an answer from Juliana, Mara sat back to watch the game, leaving her words to ring in Juliana's head.

Suddenly, Jerome was out there, hurt. And before she knew it, Juliana was helping him back to the bleachers.

"Thanks Jill…Juliana." Jerome told her and Juliana stood up to smile softly. "Do you want me to get the nurse, or will you be fine here?"

"No, I'm good. Thanks though."

Juliana went back to her seat then, telling Mara it was to instill false trust in Jerome about her. But really, Juliana didn't know why she had done it. She could have easily sat by and let himself over to the bleachers, or even allow Joy to run out onto the gym floor. Everyone had seen her bolt out of her seat when he got hurt, and now everyone was probably assuming things about them.

Juliana needed air then, so she bolted out of her seat then to go outside. After a few minutes of the breeze soothing her as the sun chirped overhead, she went back in just in time to see Fabian win the tournament for Anubis house.

Anubis house screamed and ran over to Fabian, while Juliana watched from the door, clapping and grinning, watching how happy Fabian was.

"Jewel, c'mon!" Eddie said from the middle of the gym, spotting her on the side. She jogged over then and joined in the group celebration. Finally, Fabian was freed from the grasp of his dorm mates and spotted Juliana standing there, her hair tousled from the wind outside. Juliana caught his gaze and beamed at the red-faced, sweaty, out-of-breath Fabian and realized then what she wanted to do. Maybe it was to anger Jerome who was right there, maybe to piss off Joy, or both. But all those urges she had felt from before meeting Jerome came back full force in that second and she went forward to kiss him.

It didn't matter that he was her best friend. It didn't matter he was still in that gross costume. But she kissed him, and he didn't pull back. She felt him smile through the kiss and she grinned too. She pulled back then to clapping from others in Anubis house, obviously sensing no more crying about Nina or Jerome. Juliana stared into Fabian's eyes, waiting for a sign that it was the wrong thing to do, but he just seemed happy, and a little surprised. The two laughed then and broke apart.

"It's official! They're a couple!" Willow exclaimed and jumped around eagerly. "My ship is canon!"

The others looked back at Juliana and Fabian, waiting for one of them to be embarrassed and deny it, but nothing happened. Fabian actually shrugged at Willow's words, not minding them in the slightest as evidenced by his sloppy grin.

"If only Amber were here…she'd be so excited to see you two as a couple." Mara laughed and Juliana laughed with her.

The rest of the day passed with ease, and it wasn't until the next day when they found the phonograph broken in the secret room that Juliana remembered Sibuna was needed. Eddie admitted one of Sibuna was a traitor, because of his vision, and Juliana proceeded to look around at everyone. She sighed and stepped forward. "Eddie, there's no way one of us is a traitor. I've known these guys for years now." She realized she hadn't known KT that long but she didn't want to incriminate anyone.

"I know what I saw Jewel. I'm the Osirion, not you." He snapped and Juliana shook her head.

"I trust all of you with my life! I have before." Fabian put in and Juliana snapped, "I'm going to breakfast now. And you may be Osirion Ederson, but you are not going to tell me how everything should be done because of your visions. So, meeting adjourned." She spun on her heel and headed upstairs leaving the others in her wake.

Juliana got to the dining room to hear Jerome hitting on Joy and her blood boiled under her skin. She didn't realize that she'd been holding the pitcher to the milk for the cereal so tightly in anger until Fabian's voice called out to her and brought her back to earth.

"Julie, are you okay? I mean I know what Eddie said is shocking, but Sibuna needs unity or everyone will think you're the traitor."

"But I'm not." She said slowly, putting the pitcher down and turning to Fabian.

"I know you aren't." he promised and then after a slight pause, told her that he would repair the phonograph. "We're on the right track then, if someone destroyed it. We'll win, like we always do. Promise." He tucked a strand of Juliana's darkened hair behind her ear and let his hand linger on her face so she'd look at him.

"Alright." She whispered to him and they shared a smile before sitting down to eat breakfast.

But things didn't stay peaceful for very long. Fabian turned on KT, with proof the traitor was her, and KT, hurt, retorted, "That's what someone would say to hide their own guilt!" in an effort to incriminate Fabian.

"I'd appreciate it if you'd back off of Fabian now KT. He simply took the fingerprints and it was yours that was a match. We don't want it to be you, but all signs point to you. We shouldn't fight. I'm sorry for this morning by the way Eddie." Juliana defended her new boyfriend and then added on that apology to Eddie at the end.

"You're pathetic Juliana! I saw how tense you were during those auditions for the school play. All because Joy and Fabian had to act out a romantic scene. You get too invested in people! That's why you're so willing to believe it's me, because I haven't been around as long! You're an emotional train wreck, no wonder Jerome broke up with you."

Juliana's face contorted in anger and she stepped forward. "Say that again KT." She growled and the others got in the middle. "That's enough KT!" Eddie exclaimed, and Fabian pulled Juliana to him to hug her, hoping she wouldn't punch KT in the face.

"Fine. But you've got the wrong girl." KT ran out of the room and Juliana pulled out of Fabian's embrace and whispered, "What if she's actually right?"

Patricia shook her head. "With what she just said to you? No way."

Juliana sighed and looked up into Fabian's worried face. She cracked a smile to comfort him and pecked him on the lips to show him that she was okay.

The next morning Jerome wondered aloud why everyone was ignoring KT, which made it even more awkward and Juliana stared at him, KT's words from last night running through her head.

"I have to get ready." She muttered absent-mindedly, taking a biscuit quickly and heading upstairs to grab her bags.

"Julie?" Fabian asked but she shook her head, wanting him not to worry, and headed upstairs to brush her teeth and grab her things.

She walked into the girl's bathroom to hear Mara telling Joy how Jerome is the guy to come in and reel girls in, only to break their hearts later.

"That isn't true." Juliana interjected, to the girls' surprise, including her own.

"You're defending him?" Mara asked incredulously.

"I'm just saying he wasn't like that before. He never meant to do that with me. He changed when you two started having a mutual interest in one another."

"So you're blaming me?" Mara seemed outraged.

Juliana shrugged as she brushed her teeth. She rinsed and turned back to the girls. "Take it whatever why you want. But I'm not sure I want to be a major part of this revenge thing, so that play plot you were planning to do- do it without me." She headed out then, glad she had stood up to Mara about Jerome's cheating.

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	42. Dead Attachments

Juliana watched Jerome kiss Joy for the auditions, and though Mara was blind to it by her excitement for her revenge, Juliana could see Joy actually liked Jerome. She liked kissing him.

"Juliana, you're up next." Mara called, and Juliana had to go up there and do the same scene. Mara gave Juliana a look, reminding her that this was her last major part of the revenge plot unless Juliana wanted back in.

Juliana went through the scene smoothly enough, no stuttering at least, but her heart beat wildly the whole time. Jerome leaned in for the kiss and when their lips touched, Juliana's hands instinctively went to grab him in the way she used to when they used to kiss…back when they were dating. Jerome grabbed her too, and it felt exactly the same way as it used to be. And after a moment, they realized it had become more than acting. They were no longer auditioning; it was Jillian and Jerome again, just like old times. Everyone in the audience seemed enthralled by this kiss, thinking it was superb acting, except Fabian, who saw how intense the kiss was and walked out of the room.

"And…scene!" Mara called, and that was the thing that brought them back to the reality of their situation. They weren't together anymore. And she was with Fabian now. She turned to the small audience watching and noticed Fabian wasn't there. Juliana jumped off the stage then, and grabbed her book bag, hurrying out to find Fabian. She didn't stick around, knowing she would never get the role anyway, because Mara wouldn't want to inflict 'punishment' on her for sharing the stage with Jerome or whatever.

Later she ran into Jerome, still no sign of Fabian.

"You're still here?" Jerome asked, blocking her from the exit.

"I've been all over the school looking for Fabian, so now, if you'll excuse me Jerome-" she moved to step past him but he moved with her to prevent her from doing so.

"Do you miss us Juliana? That kiss…" he trailed off and Juliana stared curiously at him.

"Do you like Joy?"" she folded her arms across her chest, not wanting to jump back into a relationship with him, if only to be left in the dirt again.

Jerome didn't answer, and while he was stunned enough at her boldness, she step sided him and headed to the door.

"You and Fabian aren't supposed to be together either Juliana! Remember that." He called after her and Juliana rolled her eyes, not falling for his bait, and continued out.

On the way back to the house she ran into Patricia. "Juliana, you look like you're about to cry. What happened to you?" Patricia asked, concerned.

Juliana explained about Jerome and the kiss and Fabian and what Jerome had just said to her, and Patricia listened calmly.

"Well c'mon then. We'll do something about it." Juliana hadn't realized that while she explained her story that Patricia had been leading her to the gatehouse.

"What're we doing here?" Juliana asked softly, and turned to see Patricia putting in the code for the door and her eyes widened. "No. Patricia, it was you?" She tried to run then, but Patricia yanked her into the building, and then Juliana was trapped.

Juliana was practically thrown upstairs into the attic with the coffins, and Frobisher examined the weary and afraid Juliana. "She'll make an excellent sinner. What was she upset about before? Her eyes are red."

"Crying about her two love interests." Patricia mocked and Juliana glared at Patricia.

"You can't get me to sin. I am not sloth, or greed, or envy, or pride, or gluttony, or wrath or-"

"You most certainly are lust though. Caught in the middle of a love triangle. You're in the perfect state too! At midnight, you'll become just like your friend here." Frobisher left the room, cackling and Juliana snapped her gaze to Patricia.

"Trixie, this isn't you. What about Eddie? And Sibuna? You can't throw it all away." She tried to reason but Patricia told her to shut up and stop sniveling.

"You'll be so much less annoying after you become a sinner." Patricia smirked and went to stand in the corner.

Juliana closed her eyes to calm herself. She had to let go of any attachments to Jerome and Fabian right now, any lingering feelings for Jerome, any confusion over Fabian, if she wanted to survive.

After practically meditating for hours, Frobisher came back in to turn her, only it wouldn't work. "Lock her up. We'll try again tomorrow." Frobisher left again, and Patricia dragged Juliana out and practically tossed her like a bag into a closet, locking the door behind her, leaving Juliana to rot for the next twelve hours in it. Frightened, she wondered if anyone would notice her absence tomorrow as she huddled in the corner, trying to keep warm and fall asleep. If only she wasn't alone. The next morning, sleeping in late with no alarm to wake her, Juliana was abruptly woken up by the sound of a struggle going on downstairs. She managed to pick the lock with a bobby pin she'd had in her hair from yesterday, and was close to getting to the door when Mr. Sweet blocked her.

"Mr. Sweet! I was imprisoned here overnight! You have to help me-" Mr. Sweet grabbed her and forced her back into the attic, and while Juliana fought him, she was hungry, tired, and weak.

"I caught this one trying to escape." Sweet told Frobisher and Juliana stopped struggling to see that Fabian was there too.

"Fabian." She whispered.

"Julie is there where you were all morning? How long have you been here? What have they done to you?" he moved closer to her as Sweet dropped her and backed away.

He knelt down and took her into his arms as she shivered. "I'm not one of them yet. I've been here all night. I'm sorry Fabian." She whispered and looked up into his eyes.

"For what?"

Juliana looked at him for a moment and instead of answering him, she reaffirmed her feelings for him by sweetly kissing him on the nose. He smiled and pressed their foreheads together. "I'll take care of this Julie."

"You mean escape?" she mouthed to him and he nodded.

"We don't have time for this lovey-dovey junk. C'mon Mr. Rutter why don't-" Frobisher was interrupted by Fabian standing up and jumping Sweet, providing a distraction.

"Run!" he yelled.

"But Fabian, what about you?" Juliana panicked.

"I'll be right behind you. Now go and don't look back until you're back at school." Juliana hesitated, seeing the little boy who stood up to the others who had put paint in her hair once more. "Go!" he insisted, and Juliana sprinted out of there.

"Get her!" Frobisher screamed and Patricia was running after her. Juliana kept going though, and when she only stopped once she was by the school. She turned around, panting, expecting to find Fabian there, but he wasn't.

"Fabian." She gasped. "Fabian!" she screamed, and began running back towards the gatehouse. He knew he'd never escape. He had helped her get away at the cost of his own freedom. And then he'd lied to her to get her to go, knowing she'd never leave him behind. And she had been selfish enough to believe him. Maybe on some level she knew he was lying, but she ran without him anyways. She should have checked he was right behind her. "Fabian!" she screamed again, and then she collapsed.

Eddie walked outside then to go back to the house for lunch and saw a cluster of people around something by the grass. Curious, he walked over, and when he squeezed through to the front, he saw it was Juliana, and immediately picked her up to bring her back to the house. "Move!" he ordered and ran to get Trudy to do something. What had happened to her?

Some classmates whispered that Juliana was working her way through the Anubis boys, but Eddie ignored all of it, completely focused on getting Juliana to wake up.

When Juliana woke up, Fabian and Eddie and Patricia and Trudy were all standing over her in her room. She sat up and Trudy immediately left to go tell Victor that she had woken up and there was no need for an ambulance or anything. "Get away from me." Juliana practically jumped away from Patricia.

"Jewel, are you alright? It's Patricia. You're okay now. Just tell us what happened."

Juliana, still looking at Patricia, scared, began to recount her tale of what happened at the gatehouse but all three of her friends laughed. "Patricia isn't the traitor. You just had a bad dream." Fabian promised her, sliding his hand into hers, and that touch caused Juliana to jump again, realizing Fabian was there.

"Fabian, how did you escape?" she asked. He chuckled and kisses her forehead. "You had a bad dream Julie. You had everyone worried sick though. Not showing up for class to drink? You passed out on the grass in front of the main building."

"No. I know what I saw. Fabian and Patricia are with Frobisher now Eddie!"

"You need to lie down for a bit Julie. I'll stay with you." Fabian promised, pushing her gently back down.

Fabian looked at Patricia and then Patricia said, "Eddie, we have to get back to the school now. We've already missed half of English."

Eddie looked at Juliana. "I'm glad you're okay Jewel." He smiled and then went off with Patricia.

"Fabian…you didn't escape did you?" Juliana narrowed her eyes at him and he smirked.

"No one will believe you Juliana. After all, everyone thinks that you just went crazy. If you try to say I'm bad now, they'll think you're just overreacting to a little fight between a couple. If you want to survive, if you want your friends, especially darling Jerome, to survive, you'll follow my advice and won't tell anybody. I don't care about you, but I guess I'll have to keep this charade up now won't I?" he sighed. Juliana stared wide-eyed at her boyfriend.

"Fabian…this isn't you. You are good. You saved me back there. We look out for each other. We're best friends. I know you. You would never threaten me. You're still in there…you have to be." She put her hand on his cheek and the way he took her hand off his face nearly broke her wrist. "Ouch!" she hissed in pain as he twisted her hand. He yanked her in close and with a focused, evil gleam in his eye smirked at her pain.

"Fabian is gone Juliana. Your precious Fabian, the boy with the fingerpaint, he's dead to you now. Lost to you forever. And if you know what's good for you, you'll let him go."

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	43. Disasters All Around

Joy ran into Juliana later, clearly upset. "Your boyfriend is being so mean Julie. Watch out for that one. Glad I'm over him." Joy shook her head, wiping at her eyes. "Besides," she smiled, "I have Jerome now."

Juliana's fists clenched unwillingly then and she looked down. She was so scared for Fabian though. He wasn't himself. She had to save him. He would save her if the roles were reversed. They did that, ever since they were little.

Alfie sprinted past the girls just then, and Juliana quickly apologized, and then sprinted after the fellow Sibuna member. Juliana immediately realized Fabian was running from them…and KT too.

"Fabian, wait!" Juliana screamed, but he ignored her. Obviously he was trying to convince KT he wasn't a sinner, trying to lure her to the gatehouse. Finally Alfie caught up to Fabian and jumped him, and the pair began to fight. The girls looked on in shock for a moment and then Juliana lifted her gaze to KT and the pair met eyes. "KT run!" she exclaimed and the girls sprinted away together towards Anubis House. Juliana tripped however, and KT kept going, not noticing that Juliana had fallen. Arms helped Juliana back up and Juliana fought it for a moment, fearing Fabian caught her, but it was Alfie.

"You okay?" he asked, concerned. Juliana nodded. "Where's KT?"

"She ran ahead. Let's go before Fabian catches up to us." Juliana said with a sense of urgency. The pair hurried back to the house and Alfie said he was going to confront Fabian, and curious, Juliana hid in the wardrobe in order to listen in to the conversation, and in case Fabian did something to Alfie.

"You've been taken." Alfie accused Fabian when Fabian walked in.

Fabian laughed. "Me? Nice little geeky Fabian? You always get it wrong Alfie." And with that, Fabian let the room again.

Juliana had wanted to jump out at Fabian for saying so hurtful to their friend, and when she stepped out of the wardrobe she walked over to put a hand on Alfie's shoulder. No words were exchanged, Alfie just let her say things without even words, without even looking into her face. They left Fabian's room and headed next door into Alfie's room where it was safer. A bit later they heard footsteps rushing down the hall and Juliana, panicked, ducked under Alfie's bed.

Fabian entered, screaming about Eddie while Alfie stood there, unmoving, taking the brunt of the volume. When Fabian stopped yelling, catching his breath, Alfie mocked him, saying Fabians attitude was why Nina left him…and why Juliana would soon follow. The things the two said to each other were so awful, but there was nothing Juliana could do. Fabian's eyes glowed red, and Alfie ran. Fabian left, and Juliana crawled out from under the bed. She stood up and bit her lip. So he still was in love with Nina. His eyes went red the second Alfie mentioned her. She knew she shouldn't have been surprised, since she still cared about Jerome, but somehow it bothered her. The emotionless Fabian gained feeling from the mere mention of Nina. It was Nina that was Fabian's true savior. Juliana couldn't do anything about that.

But relationships was not important now. Eddie was gone somewhere. And that meant her, Alfie, and KT were the only Sibunas left for the moment.

Juliana got to Alfie and the pair headed to the gatehouse. Alfie showed KT the video and Juliana sighed. "I'm sorry…for us all turning on you before KT."

"Juliana it's fine. I'm sorry…for your loss." She said still looking at the image on Alfie's phone.

"He's not dead." Juliana swore. "He's stuck…his body and soul are separated. And I'm going to fix it."

"But they have Eddie. He's the final one." KT got out and Juliana practically stopped breathing.

"No. We are not losing another Sibuna! We have to get to him." Juliana started forward, but the others pulled her back.

"You can't just run in there." Alfie warned her. The three then planned to distract the others so Eddie could be safe until morning at least. They got inside, but Eddie had it under control. So, they headed back to the house for the night.

The next morning was awkward. Fabian was throwing food at Jerome and Juliana leaned over and sternly whispered in Fabian's ear to stop.

Fabian smirked and turned to her saying, "What? I'm simply defending my girlfriend."

Juliana seemed bewildered by this and narrowed her eyes at him, and Fabian continued to play with the food.

After breakfast, the three Sibunas met up in the foyer. Juliana ran upstairs to get her bag, and as she came to the stairs to join them again she heard KT say, "Can you believe Fabian?"

"Yeah, well, we have to remember he's not himself." Alfie reminded her.

"Can you imagine how Julie feels right now? God, it must be hard being a couple with him right now." KT sighed.

"Not only that. They've been friends since forever too and-"

"Hey guys, ready to go?" Juliana came down the stairs, not wanting to hear anymore. The two smiled at her as if they hadn't just been talking about her and they headed off. They discussed the plan on the way. Alfie and Juliana would distract Frobisher and KT went to get Eddie.

Eddie came back with KT minutes later and Juliana stood up and threw her arms around Eddie's neck, hugging him. "I'm so glad you're alright." Juliana told him.

Eddie hugged her back for a moment saying, "You have no idea how glad I am to see you again Jewel."

They heard Frobisher coming back and hid immediately, and Alfie discovered his part of the rhyme referred to the chimney, so up he went, despite his fear of heights. Frobisher discovered Alfie and the others grew alarmed. "Alfie!" Eddie and Juliana sounded and Alfie told them to go. "We'll come back for you." Eddie promised, picking up the box Alfie dropped and the trio left. They gained Eddie, but lost Alfie. As they escaped, they could hear Alfie screaming Sibuna and Juliana could still remember how it was in the very beginning when everyone had first joined the group, before KT, before Eddie came along.

"We let them get Alfie." Juliana echoed KT to herself once back at the house.

"They would have gotten the artifact though." Eddie told the girls, trying to make up for guilt.

The trio heard people coming from the basement and hid in the dining room. It was Patricia and Fabian. They listened in to the conversation and ended up headed to the woods for the final artifact.

Eddie got it, but KT tapped Juliana on the shoulder and pointed to where Fabian and Patricia were. They were watching them. "Wait here." Juliana told KT and hurried towards them to spy. But Fabian saw what she was doing and grabbed her.

The other two came running, with the artifact in hand.

"Go you two. I'll be fine. I can't become a sinner now right? They already have the five."

"No, we're not going." KT shook her head, stepping closer.

"But with Alfie-"

"That was Alfie...this is you Jewel. No gerbil, no sinner, no stupid Ammut is going to hurt you- promise." Eddie said, looking at Juliana. So he still remembered all the Jerome drama from last term. She smiled weakly and then she felt Fabian tug her closer and she hissed in pain.

"Are you hitting on my girlfriend?" Fabian narrowed his eyes. "I can't allow that. Patricia, you should teach your beau a thing or two about looking at other friend's girls." The two laughed and Eddie looked on at Juliana and the sinners in horror.

"We can stand here all day." Patricia shrugged. "Except Ammut will want to…devour…someone when the sky turns black later."

"Eddie." Juliana panicked, struggling to get out of the arms she used to gladly run to.

"Fine, you want it? Go get it!" he threw the artifact and Fabian let go to grab it, and the trio immediately ran.

"I have the real artifact." Eddie assured Juliana. "I tricked them." They ran to the house and got the other artifacts and Eddie put them all together. Eddie got a vision on what to do with it and they headed downstairs to get to the gatehouse when Denby came through the door. Eddie hid in the coat closet on the side and the girls took the fall.

Eddie rushed out the second they got upstairs and when the girls got back down, Denby got impatient.

Fabian and Patricia entered the foyer, and so did Alfie...his eyes glowing red. "Robert's calling."

"Then it's time." Fabian grinned and everyone left.

"Fabian! Time for what? Fabian!" Juliana chased them to the door, but didn't go further, knowing the end was near, but not wanting him to go with the others too. She looked back at KT and Denby, and chased after the sinners, knowing they were heading to the gatehouse…where Eddie probably was too.

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**Gosh, sorry it's been so long. I'll try to finish the story today, but I won't upload it all today I promise. Got to hang on to Juliana and the gang for a bit longer right?**

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	44. Keep Trying

"Fabian." Juliana called out, stopping him from going inside the gatehouse, just as Eddie was doing with Patricia around the corner.

"Ah Julie, do you want to be the first to be devoured?" he raised an eyebrow in amusement and Juliana pressed him against the wall.

"Listen to me Fabian. It's me, Juliana. Your girlfriend. Your best friend. You're not yourself. You would never join them. You're not evil. You have to be in there somewhere. You remember me…so you have to have some of those feelings too. Remember when you saved me from those bullies? How we became best friends? Walking to each other's houses all the time to hang out and read? Remember how hurt we both were that we weren't in Anubis House together? Our first kiss? All our Sibuna adventures? How you always joked about how Jerome wasn't good enough for me?" Fabian stared at her. "Fabian please. If you can't have feelings for me, what about Nina? When she first came here? When you kissed at the dance? How it hurt when she left? Doesn't any of it mean something to you?" Fabian shoved her off and walked towards the door, Juliana chased after him and spun him around to her to kiss him.

"KT! Jewel, let's go!" Eddie sounded suddenly, and Juliana pulled away from Fabian, looking into his eyes for a moment, and then ran inside ahead of Patricia and Fabian. His expression was so unclear, but she knew he at least kissed her back, if only for a split second. Juliana had him back for that second, but he was gone again. Juliana ran up the stairs with the others. Eddie put the artifact in the center of the attic in the gatehouse and the Sibunas cheered until they realized Frobisher tricked them, and now they really could do the ceremony.

"Let's get out of here." Eddie pressed, but Patricia blocked the door.

"Don't you dare." Fabian snarled and Juliana bit her lip and looked away from him, watching Ammut rise. "I had no idea you were such saps."

Frobisher laughed and Juliana grabbed Fabian by the collar. "What are you going to do? Hit me?" Fabian chuckled and Juliana let him go robotically.

"There's no point...Fabian's gone." She turned on Frobisher. "Bring him back! Give him back right now!"

Frobisher just smiled evilly. "Now why would I do that when I can see you suffer dear?"

"Leave her alone Frobisher." Eddie stepped in front of Juliana. Frobisher then asked for KT's key, but she nor Eddie had it.

"Cease!" Ammut declared. She wasn't strong enough though, and she wanted to feast on more souls.

Juliana stared at Fabian's sarcophagus, wondering if Ammut was eating away at his soul right at that very moment. Chaos would reign, just like Ammut said, if everyone was made into a sinner.  
"Now!" Eddie grabbed Juliana's wrist and pulled her out of her daze, and the Sibunas sprinted out.

"Victor, get them!" they heard Frobisher order.

"We have to warn the others." KT said at the school, after Eddie discussed that the most important thing was stopping Frobisher from getting any further in his plans.

"It's pointless, who would believe us?" Eddie sounded. They turned the topic to the key and went to go around the school for it.

Everyone gathered in the rec. room and Frobisher opened the book to take them as sinners. The Sibunas escaped before they would be taken over and minutes later, the hallways fell to ruins with the utter bedlam around. They hid backstage, and it seemed the whole school had fallen apart until Willow appeared, okay.

"Run, run!" Eddie ordered when Victor told students to search the stage for them. They only got outside before they were surrounded by soulless students though from all sides. Eddie had his arms spread out, as if he could shield the girls from harm. "This might be it guys." He sounded, but then a white van of sorts pulled up, with Harriet at the wheel.

The four got in the car and it sped away before Frobisher could do anything. They stopped at some random point in the woods and Harriet explained about Ammut and what would happen. And when Eddie claimed Willow to be immune, Harriet stated that no one was, and a special key was required to protect oneself. Willow had it, which was why she was okay. Harriet explained that if they got another key, the sun key, Ammut could be stopped and locked away. The gatehouse was more secure than ever though and Denby had the other key.

"Wait, what about the guys in Anubis?" Willow asked. "They were fine when I left, we should warn them." Juliana went wide-eyed. Mara, Joy, Trudy…and Jerome.

"I'm sorry Willow, it's already too late." Harriet shook her head.

"No." Juliana sounded and everyone looked at her, who had been practically silent since they hopped in the van.

"Jewel, be reasonable about this. If we get the key, we can save everyone."

"No. I'm not letting anyone else get taken. Fabian's gone…I…" she struggled to get the words out as she slowly shook her head in denial, "I have to save them. I have to save Jerome. I'm sorry. Good luck!" she rushed off, blinking back tears, knowing she was practically running to her own death.

"Jewel!" Eddie screamed after her, but KT grabbed his arm and shook her head. "We can't lose anyone else."

"Willow? Harriet? We can't just let her do this!" Eddie looked to them for backup but they looked away from Eddie, ashamed.

"So she still loves him after all." Willow murmured and Eddie looked at where Juliana had run off to, wishing she'd be successful in her endeavor…for her sake and safety.

"Stop!" Juliana ran inside the house screaming. But it was too late. Fabian and Patricia and Alfie already got the others in the foyer, and Frobisher had his book.

"Ah, what a pity dear. But welcome! You're finally willing to join us I see."

"Never." She snarled, skirting around him over to the boys.

"Ji-Juliana, what's going on?"

"We need to run. Now. Sibuna stuff. Let's go." she pressed Jerome, her heart ready to burst out of chest with the complete fear that was overtaking her. "Jerome please."

"Too late." Frobisher cackled and began to open the book.

Juliana sprinted out towards the back door, praying that Jerome had the sense to follow. She got outside and heard screams and immediately peeked back in. "Well hello Jillian." Jerome smirked from right inside the door. He had gotten so close to being securely outside. He had probably reached the kitchen before the gray mist got him too. He still had trusted her.

"Jerome." She bit her lip to keep from crying out.

"You really did look better with blonde hair." Jerome shook his head. Fabian joined Jerome and clapped Jerome on the back.

"Thanks for looking after my girlfriend Jerry." He said and reached out for Juliana. She pulled back immediately and Fabian frowned. "We could be happy together if would just join us already. We could wreak havoc together!"

"Nina would have never joined you, and neither will I. You just choose all the good girls don't you Fabes?" and she was off, sprinting through the brush to find the Sibunas. "Eddie? KT? Willow? Harriet? Anyone there?" she whispered as she panicked in the darkness of the woods.

"I will find you!" Victor shouted from a short distance away, so she knew they had been around here.

She thought she heard her name but she turned towards the source and it was just bushes rustling.

"It's Jewel Harriet!"

"She may have been turned and came to retrieve you." She warned.

"Ederson you twat come out here right now." She swallowed a sob, thinking of how she lost Fabian and Jerome and everyone else. She fell to her knees and Eddie shook Harriet off and rushed to Juliana's side. He helped her up and everyone came out from the bushes and they headed to the crypt.

"Where's Willow?" Juliana asked Eddie and KT and they explained how Harriet slipped the key into KT's pocket.

"What about you? How's the gerbil and everyone else?"

"Taken. I got there too late. Jerome he…almost…" Juliana hiccupped and she put her hand to her mouth to quiet herself in her sobs.

"It'll be okay." Eddie promised and pulled her into a hug. "I'm just glad you're safe."

"How did you know I wasn't one of them?" she asked.

"Because the way you fell…you looked like you had just come back from a war or something." Eddie told her.

"I hope know you all realize we haven't the time for being sentimental and heroic." Harriet sounded and Juliana and KT glared at the older woman. Eddie said they needed to make a plan to keep the conflict from getting any more heated and they discussed what they had to do.

The next morning they headed towards the gatehouse…and Fabian was the one guarding it.

"He knows I escaped, I can't be seen. I'll be around the corner. Go!" Juliana whispered and hid. She waited, barely making out what was being said and when they headed inside, she walked forward.

"Julie, what do you think you're doing here? Are you that stupid?"

"Jerome got to me this morning. Sweet and Victor told me to head over here to help you guard the place. Thought it would be too much for you to handle on your own."

Fabian narrowed his eyes. "Jerome caught you did he? And you were turned with the book?"

"How else?" she laughed, inside she felt almost sick to her stomach with her act. She nonchalantly headed inside much to the chagrin of Fabian but he couldn't leave his post or get in huge trouble. Before Fabian could yell at her to get back to where he was, she was already gone upstairs. She caught up to the others in the tank room where Denby was asking to join Ammut to rule the destruction. Ammut figured out that KT was lyin about being a sinner and Ammut came at her. Harriet grabbed the moon key, tossed it to Eddie, and took in Ammut for KT, sacrificing herself.

The blue turned to red, which meant the sky was turning red. Frobisher appeared just as the trio were about to insert the keys, and pleaded with KT, but trusting Eddie more, they inserted the key in the hole and Ammut and Denby were sucked into Ammut's prison.

"It's over." Juliana grinned. "We did it!" she hugged the other two and they all had a moment for celebration.

Harriet sat up and talked about how the last thing she remembered was her snatching the moon key from her sister. Which meant everyone else was okay too!

Juliana rushed out without another word and found the surroundings empty just outside, so she sprinted to the school. She burst through the doors of the hallway and saw the other Sibuna members. Fabian!" she cried out. He had just enough time to turn towards her before she slammed into him. He was confused, and the fact that she had wrapped her arms around his neck as tight as she could, as if afraid he'd disappear from her grasp along with her crying threw him off.

"Hey Julie, what's wrong? Do you know what's happened around here?" he hugged her back, trying to soothe her.

Juliana pulled back just enough to look into his eyes. "Nothing. Nothing's wrong. Everything's completely okay." She giggled at his confused expression and leaned in to kiss him. He moved his hands from her waist to the sides of her face as she made out with him in front of everyone in the midst of all the mess. It was as if he had never been gone.

Later, at dinner, Alfie was apologizing to Willow profusely, saying he didn't remember breaking up with her. And beside them were Fabian and Juliana, a happier couple, holding hands beneath the table. Juliana was so glad that everything was normal again that she didn't even spare a glance at Jerome, who kept looking at Joy and then back to his book. It was obvious he liked her. And Joy liked him back.

Victor came in just then, announcing that while Founder's Day was cancelled, the party was still on, and everyone cheered.

"Well let's go then." Fabian told everyone, and they gathered their coats and scarfs and put them on.

"Fabes, your hat is crooked." Juliana told him and fixed it for him. He pecked her on the lips and smiled. "What would I do without you Julie?"

Hearing him say that after all the awful things Fabian had done that he would never remember warmed her heart and her face broke out into a sweet smile. "C'mon then. We better get a move on." The two then went on their way, talking and laughing. Mara joined them at the popcorn booth and once she had hers, all three headed away to watch the fireworks and they bumped into Joy and Jerome being all lovey-dovey.

"Mara, I'm-" he started. But Mara stopped him and gave them her blessing. "This is your last chance. Most people get a third chance, much less a fourth. Make it count. But if you hurt her in any way, you're a dead man." Jerome gulped and Mara left them, Fabian following after Mara to offer her a hot chocolate.

"Juliana." Jerome called as she went to follow her boyfriend. Juliana closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then turned to the pair, cocking an eyebrow as if to ask what they wanted from her.

"It all started with you and I'm sorry I hurt you. I will always regret putting you through so much that my Jillian ended up dying in the process. I know it's not much, not after all this time…but can you forgive me? I want us to get along again." He seemed so desperate for her compassion, her forgiveness that she looked at her ex and studied him for a moment. Looking into those blue eyes she remembered every moment. Their first meeting, what it was like when she came back, their first date, kiss…and everything that followed. A lot had changed in a year. A lot had happened. She nodded to Jerome and he moved as if he were about to hug her but, clearly knowing better than to do so, he restrained himself and simply thanked her. She left him without another word, not wanting to break down again over him.

She saw Fabian sharing hot chocolate with Mara though. He'd given Mara the hot chocolate meant for her. That was hers, not Mara's. And a sense of complete dread went through her and her stomach dropped. What if Mara went after her boyfriend again? They were smiling and laughing and Mara clearly had that posture of flirting going on. Angered, but wanting to take a calm approach, she went forward and saw Fabian had whipped cream on his nose. She wiped it off with her finger and licked it, and then leaned over to kiss Fabian right in front of Mara so she would know to back off.

"Oh, your hot chocolate! I'll go get it!" Fabian said, realizing Juliana's empty hands.

Left alone Juliana said, while looking at the fireworks, "If you try to make a move on another one of my boyfriends, things will be worse between us then it was before. You do want to friends again right? With…Mick's cousin?" she reminded Mara who she was and Mara was silent for a moment before saying, "Of course I want to be friends still Juliana. I wouldn't want it any other way."

"Good. You get my message then." She smiled at Mara, mostly real, but a bit of it was forced and Mara could tell. Fabian came back just then and handed a hot chocolate to Juliana, asking what he'd missed and both girls said nothing. Seeing Fabian's expression, Juliana leaned in and whispered, "Girls will be girls Fabes." She kissed his cheek and entertwined her free hand with Fabian's. The whole group stod together for the grand finale and all the Sibunas exchanged looks before taking their hands and making the sign. Grinning from ear to ear, Juliana put her hand back into Fabian's and put her head on his shoulder where he rested his cheek. It was probably the happiest moment since the term began.

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	45. A Final Disaster

School was about to end. Valedictorian was announced by Mr. Sweet, and in the anticipation of it, Jerome was pointing his finger back and forth between Fabian and Mara, debating who it would be. Juliana took Fabian's hand firmly in hers and squeezed it for support, assuring him he would win. But when it was Mara that was given the title, Fabian's face immediately fell and his grip on Juliana's hand slackened. Both Fabian and Juliana both looked at Mr. Sweet in shock, and only when Fabian let go of Juliana's hand completely did the connection break, and she looked up to the clock to count down the final moments of their schooling careers before university. The bell rang and everyone threw up their papers in celebration. Juliana got up to hug her friends and peers, and when walking out of the room with the girls, she realized there was someone missing. She looked back and saw Fabian still sitting there so she headed back into the empty classroom and put her hand over his.

"You deserve that title more than anyone Fabes. Mara just seems to win everything huh? But you know what? She didn't save the world. So I think you're the real winner, even if the rest of the world doesn't know it- I do." She leaned in and kissed his nose. "Now c'mon. Let's get out of here." She jerked her head towards the door, pulling Fabian up, and Fabian began to smile. Juliana always a knack for cheering him up. They headed out and Juliana lightly tugged him along, skipping merrily as to amuse Fabian, which it did, and he started laughing, and for a moment he forgot about the valedictorian.

They got back to the house, and Fabian excused himself to go into his room, and Juliana let him go, only for the other boys to zoom across the hall and then fall over into the kitchen. Juliana shook her head and walked over to see Jerome, Eddie, and Alfie on the floor in a pile…and a stranger making food. Dexter, he said his name was. When Jerome called for Trudy to ask who this Dexter was, Trudy explained that the incoming freshmen had bedbugs at their place, so they were moving in early.

And if there was one here…there were probably others in the house too…Anubis House got the real infestation here. Just then everyone came downstairs, ready for the field trip, and two strange girls appeared, saying Sweet was allowing them to go to. So they were newbies too.

Juliana headed onto the bus, and looked back realizing Eddie, Patricia, and Fabian were nowhere to be seen. She figured they were heading out, and she climbed onto the bus to save seats. What she didn't know was that Eddie and Fabian were having a discussion back at the house about how Fabian didn't want to go to the museum.

Fabian explained to Eddie that he was too upset, and if he got on that bus with Juliana, she would see right through him, and when he was upset, she got upset, and Fabian couldn't stand to see her sad because of him. Fabian tried showing Eddie his valedictorian speech, but Eddie threw it away, and Sophia, another newbie, headed in and made quite the entrance, slipping and falling into Eddie's arms…in front of Patricia. Victor told them all to get out, as everyone was waiting for them, and they all scattered.

Juliana in the meanwhile, was being confronted by Cassie and Erin…more like Cassie, with a silent sidekick though. Cassie wanted to grab the seats Juliana was saving for Patricia and Eddie, and Juliana refused them.

"Well then, can we share a seat with you?" Cassie raised her eyebrows, but Juliana folded her arms and told her no. "Why not?" Cassie asked snottily and Juliana answered that it was reserved for her boyfriend. "So you have a boyfriend? Is he on the bus yet?" Cassie looked around, and caught sight of one of the boys at the back of the bus. "Oh he's cute!"

Juliana whipped her head back to follow Cassie's gaze and saw the blond hair, and the tall back of the guy she was clearly ogling over. Jerome.

"No. No way. He's off-limits." Juliana said, shaking her head, and sitting back down completely.

"Is he your boyfriend then?" Cassie grinned, like she found it funny.

"Not anymore." Juliana said through clenched teeth, not wanting to answer to these bothersome girls anymore, when the others finally climbed aboard the bus.

"Fabes! You guys! I saved us all seats!" she stood up so they would see her, and once they caught sight of her, their faces lit up and they took their seats. Cassie and Erin got the hint and went to find other seats then.

"Thanks Jewel." Eddie said, looking back at her.

"No problem. Where were you guys though?" she looked at Fabian and Fabian stuttered before answering that Eddie had eaten too much earlier and got a stomachache but Fabian and Patricia convinced him to go.

"Oh no, Eddie are you alright? Not carrots I hope. I've seen too many of those for a lifetime."

Eddie laughed, knowing he was responsible for what she was referring to and he assured Juliana that he was fine, and it was only a few extra of his homemade pancakes. He glared at Fabian though when Juliana wasn't looking. Now if she found out the real reason why the boys had lagged behind she'd probably smack her boyfriend…and with good reason too, lying like that. Patricia lifted an eyebrow to Eddie once her turned back to face front but he gestured for her to keep quiet about it, so Juliana wouldn't find out and Patricia agreed with a smile and a shake of her head, knowing how dumb boys could be sometimes.

Once at the museum, walking around with Joy and Patricia, the three girls spotted Cassie and Erin looking at Jerome and Fabian.

The boys were oblivious and as they looked at one of the exhibits, Fabian asked, "Hey Jerome…when Julie's mad…how to get her to…you know…not be mad? Or sad for that matter."

"You think you'd have it down by now Fabian." Jerome smirked and looked over at his friend, seeing Fabian's face; he knew the guy was inexperienced when it came to this new territory with Juliana though. Things change a lot from best friends to being in a relationship, and suddenly the old methods of cheering up no longer work. "Do the usual thing, apologize like crazy, shower her with attention and give her a gift, and if all else fails- kiss her until she forgets what she was mad about."

Fabian studied Jerome's expression and narrowed his eyes saying, "If I didn't know any better Jerome, 'd think you still had feelings for Julie."

"Jillian is something else, that's for sure. But she seems to want nothing near to do with me, and she's told me specifically that her old self is dead. That's why she dyed her hair- to get away from being my Jillian, did you know that? Of course you did, you're her precious Fabes. The buddy since preschool. I still miss Jillian, and I miss Juliana too, but she's out of my reach now. It's better this way though, that she has you. Her meatball head of a cousin would have approved of _you._ You're better for her. You won't hurt her or put her into peril like I did…like with Rufus…" Jerome trailed off and felt for something inside his pocket. He pulled it out slightly to look at it and Fabian noticed.

"You still have-"

Jerome put it away and gave Fabian a look that he better not mention it. Jerome sighed. "Funny how things work out. Joy used to be obsessed with you, and now it's like we've traded girls. But don't worry, I won't steal Juliana. I doubt she'd take me back anyway. I'm great, you're great, she's great, Joy's great. Everyone's great!" Jerome's face lit up and he reached towards the exhibit before Fabian smacked his hand away. Jerome started to walk off and Fabian ran after him.

Cassie giggled at the boys, obviously smitten with both. "Preppy or smart? Both are really cute. Looks like that one there's beaten me to the American though." Cassie sighed, looking at Sophia and Eddie.

"That one is already taken." Patricia said, coming up with the other two girls behind the newbies. "By me." Joy threatened the girls, reminding them that she and her friends were the seniors, not them.

"The preppy boy is mine." Joy clarified, crossing her arms over her chest.

"And the bookworm is mine." Juliana smirked sarcastically, tilting her head to the side.

"But the preppy one used to be yours. I'm guessing he left you for this one? He's good-looking though. I bet he really gets around."

Joy pushed Patricia along to catch Eddie from the newbie, not wanting to hear anymore, but Juliana stayed to give them a little extra advice, her throat tight with anger, "Listen here squirts. Jerome won't cheat on Joy. They're good together. They're great. And my boyfriend is great. I'm great. Everyone's great. And Eddie and Patricia are two of my closest friends. There is no way anyone is getting in the middle of them. Now go bother that boy in your grade…what was his name? Dexter right? I'm sure you'll find something to chat about." Juliana shoved past them and headed to the bathroom so she could check her face and make sure she wasn't scowling.

She walked out and saw Cassie twirling her hair as she talked to Fabian and her eyes flashed wide open with anger, and she marched over and turned Fabian to her to kiss him in front of the younger girls. Fabian seemed flustered at first but kissed her back a moment later. Juliana pulled back when she could no longer breathe and took Fabian's hand, tugging him away from the newbies. Conviently, Victor announced that it was time to go then, but then Cassie walked in between, separating their hands, and Cassie looped her arm through Fabian's.

With a glare, Juliana stomped over, and did the same that Cassie had done, and this time got a firm grip on Fabian's arm so Cassie wouldn't come in between again. She pulled him along as far from Cassie as possible. Fabian was blissfully aware of the unspoken war between the girls, and Juliana knew better than to believe that Fabian would ever see Cassie in that way, but it still worried her. She didn't want to get hurt the way Jerome and Mara had hurt her ever again.

Exhausted from the last day, Juliana fell asleep on Fabian's shoulder on the ride back, and he smiled and rested his cheek on top of her head, and closed his eyes too, but Jerome's uneasiness from earlier still rang out in his ears. Back at the house, once Fabian had woken up Juliana and everyone got off the bus, they realized Trudy had prepared a buffet of food for them. Dexter seemed elated, but Jerome argued it was only for the people who were graduating which Juliana smiled at weakly, silently agreeing with him.

Then Sweet and Victor entered from opposite doors, and closed them and told them an artifact went missing from the museum today, and that there would be a bag check.

Everyone quickly got in a circle and a few seconds later from beside her, Fabian shoved a ton of food in his mouth and quickly gestured at Eddie for him to give Fabian something. Eddie complied and then from behind Fabian passed Juliana something. It felt like a pyramid, and Juliana realized it was the artifact, looking at Fabian with wide eyes, she passed it on to Patricia and the passing kept going until it got to Alfie. Eddie fessed up, but explained he had no idea how it got there. Victor studied it, and screamed suddenly for everyone to get out. Back upstairs, the younger girls had wandered into Juliana's room, wondering how come she had a room entirely to herself when the power went out.

"Alright move. Don't touch anything. I hope you have flashlights in your room because I only have mine." Juliana reached into a drawer and pulled the flashlight out and switched it on. She rushed the two out of her room and closed her door behind her. Following the other beams of light from Mara and the other girls, she headed to the stairs, and a minute later, Cassie and Erin were there too, with their flashlights.

Victor told them all to get to bed, and said the pin phrase, which Dexter laughed at, saying it was Victor's catch phrase. Juliana rolled her eyes, angry and tired after the day's events and wanting it just to end for the night. Jerome stated that everyone knew that already in a slightly rude tone to Dexter and Sophia complained that she hated the dark.

"Get used to it then. You picked the wrong house to move into then sweetheart." Juliana grumbled , which no one heard, and then Eddie offered to play a game of cellar dare and have a party, to which everyone agreed.

Juliana was following into the dining room when Fabian and Eddie pulled her back. They explained that something was up with that stone from before, it being in Eddie's bag like that, and that they needed to get Sibuna on the case. The trio lifted their hands to cover their eye and said the club name and followed the others as they headed to the basement. They got to the final step just as Jerome and Alfie popped out of the wardrobe, scaring most of the girls there. Juliana just laughed to herself, knowing that the prankster duo hadn't grown up too much after all, and it made her happy. Joy yelled at Jerome, but he defended himself saying it was good training, which it was, considering all the things the newbies would probably have to face next year. Juliana headed over to Patricia to tell her about the Sibuna thing when the others headed upstairs and Juliana heard Patricia say that Eddie was probably going to look for Sophia. Joy laughed it off, saying it was never good to be possessive and jealous, but she turned to see Jerome with the newbies and called him over immediately. Juliana stifled a laugh but with Jerome so close to her, feeling awkward, Juliana decided to head upstairs to join the others. Just as she got into the foyer though the ground began to quake and she was slammed into the door, causing it to close. An earthquake? She heard footsteps rapidly coming up the stairs and the jiggling of the doorknob, but it wouldn't open from the inside she heard the voice say. Jerome. He was on the other side of that door, and in the cellar…during an earthquake. Without thinking, she grabbed onto the doorknob, trying to open it, but it wouldn't budge. Everyone was down there except KT, Eddie, Sophia, and Dexter…which meant Fabian was down there too. She pounded on the door hysterically, trying to get through to someone, screaming for Jerome and Fabian, not knowing if they were okay, or if they could ever hear her in all the panic.

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	46. Saving the World

The quake stopped though and Juliana heard Victor coming back inside.

She darted upstairs, where she found the others going into a secret passage to the cellar, and joined them. They got downstairs and as Victor and Sweet headed downstairs, everyone hid, and Fabian had hidden where they had entered. Juliana threw her arms around him, all her panic washed away now and he whispered that it had been fine, and no one got hurt. She pulled apart from him though when the lights came back on and everyone immediately switched off their flashlights. They watched as everyone got caught and were sent upstairs, and once everyone else was gone, they listened in to what the two men had to say. The Touchstone of Ra. Just then, Sophia tripped and made a sound, alerting the men that they were down here. Juliana was speechless how at how much trouble all these newbies could cause, when Dexter saved them by coming downstairs, making it seem like he was the one to make the sound. He was rushed upstairs again with Mr. Sweet on his tail and Victor hid something away before going upstairs too.

Eddie said they were in the clear and everyone wrapped around the table to discuss what they'd all just heard. When KT asked if Victor would really sacrifice someone Juliana remembered that ordeal with the tipping scales and the Cup of Ankh…and how it almost killed Jerome. But based on Victor's reaction to Rufus hurting the students, Juliana didn't believe he would ever want to actually kill one of them for selfish reasons like gold. And much to the chagrin of Patricia, who was jealous, and Juliana, who was still pissed, Sophia ended up being let into Sibuna. Out of nowhere, Mara popped out, nearly giving Juliana a heart attack. And based on Fabian's reaction, he was as startled as she was.

Mara started to rant and asked if everyone knew about it except for her and Joy but everyone went silent, and Mara realized Joy knew about Sibuna too.

"What about Jerome?" Mara looked in Juliana's direction and she nodded weakly, all memories of that horrible time in the cellar with Rufus and the others on prom night coming out full force.

"Mick is the only one besides you who didn't know. I mean, you two were just dancing away at prom-"

"So that's where everyone was at prom? Sibuna?" Mara cried out and everyone shushed her. Mara turned and threatened to call the police, but Eddie and Fabian pulled her back, and Juliana rolled her eyes at how stupid and close-minded Mara was being. As if the police could do anything. The sound of keys from above rang out, and everyone headed back into the secret passage, Fabian and Eddie dragging Mara along as she struggled.

The next day didn't start too well, with the disaster of a class photo that happened due to Willow. Sibuna headed back to the house after, laughing at the how the photoshoot went when Eddie went into his stuff, only to find the touchstone missing. Poor Dexter walked in at the wrong time though, and Eddie accused Dexter of stealing the stone. Juliana stood up from Fabian's bed and told Eddie that maybe he got it wrong. Dexter was the most tame and tolerable of all the newbies. Pointing fingers right away didn't do any good, as proven with the mess with KT and the traitor sinner not too long ago.

Sophia entered then, and received a glare from Patricia. Eddie said Dexter was just leaving, and out the younger boy went. "You know Eddie, you can be excessively cruel sometimes." Juliana told him, before chasing after Dexter. Juliana was being a bit of a hypocrite then, but something in her gut told her Dexter wasn't responsible for this mess.

That night, missing out on Sibuna's plans to dig up the canopic jar due to her comforting Dexter and then deciding to just chill out on her laptop for the night, locking herself away in her room, Juliana awoke with a start after having fallen asleep in front of the computer, hearing something going on downstairs. She saw Sophia and Dexter leaving through the front door, and going somewhere in a hurry.

She followed, and while Dexter headed off towards the school, Sophia went towards the crypt, so Juliana went after her. How could Sophia possibly know about the crypt? She crept in, only for Sophia to somehow immediately sense her presence inside the crypt.

"Come out now, or we'll have to do this the hard way." Sophia sounded from the center of crypt around the corner. But it didn't really sound like her. She had the stone. Juliana knew all along it wasn't Dexter.

Juliana then sprinted off, in hopes of reaching the house to tell her friends and warn them. And for a bit there, Juliana thought she might actually make it. The house was in sight and all seemed well, until someone came up behind her and put something to her mouth and nose to breathe in. Juliana struggled against Sophia, but soon enough, her eyelids grew heavy and she slumped to the ground, her last conscious thought being that she had failed Fabian and the others. Sophia dragged Juliana back across the grounds to the crypt and tossed her to the floor once inside. Just then Dexter came in with the head of the canopic jar, and Eddie tailing him. Dexter grabbed Eddie and when Sophia's trance didn't work, she realized Eddie was the Osirion. Sophia left the boys then and Eddie accidentally managed to knock some sense into Dexter, literally, and as Eddie tried to get the door open, Dexter pointed to Juliana on the ground. "Why is she here? Is she dead?"

Eddie looked to what Dexter was talking about and his mind went blank. "Juliana." He whispered, and raced over to her. He knelt down and felt her pulse. It was slow, but steady. "Sophia must have poisoned her or given her some knock-out drug or something. She's alive though…" Eddie put his head in his hands. If he didn't die in here, Fabian would probably kill him when Sibuna found them. If he saw Juliana like this, he'd flip on Eddie.

All night the boys tried to find a way out, and because Dexter couldn't reach the opening in the ceiling, that escape route was out. Just then they heard someone coming in, and they hid, picking up Juliana, who still hadn't woken up yet, and hiding her with them. The boys jumped out at who they thought was Sophia, but it turned out to be Patricia and the gang.

The two groups exchanged information on what they'd found out, and Fabian asked once Eddie offered to go through Sophia's things at the house with KT where Juliana was, because she'd been strangely missing all day too. Eddie looked over towards the corner where Juliana lay, and Fabian followed Eddie's direction and spotted her. He immediately raced over to her and dropped to knees, not sure what to do though exactly.

"She's alive. She was in here, like this, when Sophia locked Dexter and I in here." Just then, Juliana stirred in Fabian's arms and both boys breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well good morning Fabian." She smiled up happily at him, rubbing her eyes. "And morning to you too Eddie." She nodded in Eddie's direction but she seemed to realize that wasn't right, and she sat up suddenly. She looked around and groaned, "I was almost to the house too." She told the boys about what had happened on her end of things the previous night, and once she was filled in on everything herself from the others, Eddie rushed off with KT to the house. Fabian stood up and pulled Juliana to her feet. "We should get to the school." He told her, and without another word, they both ran off towards it.

When they got there, the others told them to get back to the house, and then everyone sprinted over there, leaving Juliana out of breath, until she saw the chandelier in the foyer completely destroyed. They helped Victor to the couch, and then him and Fabian headed upstairs to look at Fabian's computer in Victor's office. Juliana went after them to help Victor, but waited outside the office, her mind still clearing after whatever Sophia had done to her. They exited the office minutes later, and as the three of them headed down the stairs everyone came together into the foyer. Eddie ran in with the newbies, and said KT and the touchstone were gone.

Cassie said that they had to stop Sophia before they turned into statues, and Fabian looked to her, saying that the world was about to end. "We can't just be thinking of ourselves."

"Fabian, don't be too harsh. She's totally new to this stuff."

"Well Juliana, you were being incredibly harsh to her all week and now of a sudden you're nice? Bit moody right now."

"That's really unfair Fabian-" Juliana glared at him and the pair started yelling at each other just as everyone else began talking over each other and it wasn't until Mars screamed for quiet that everyone shut up. Mara gave Victor her research on where the other touchstones may be, and it was discovered they were the foundations of Anubis House.

Trudy came in to find the mess and took everyone to get ready for graduation at Victor's request, except for Eddie.

Juliana walked out with the other girls in their cap and gowns to meet with the rest of Sibuna over where Alfie was. Alfie had given what Sibuna needed to Willow though to use as the valedictorian medal, and she came running to Alfie to kiss him, so obviously she was happy about how thngs turned out for her.

Fabian glared at Alfie and Joy and Jerome wandered over, joking about everyone's serious faces.

"You all look as if the world is about to end." Jerome laughed and Juliana looked at the floor, knowing if Jerome saw her expression it'd be a dead giveaway.

Just then Mr. Sweet called everyone to take their seats as graduation was about to start, and everyone managed to get away without answering Jerome.

Juliana walked up the aisle with her friends, but as they reached their letter in the alphabet, they left her to sit down. Left alone, Juliana headed up to the front and joined the C's. As she spotted her seat, the empty one, she realized that she hated her name. Clarewell came right before Clarke, which meant she had to sit next to Jerome. She sighed and took her seat quietly, hoping Jerome wouldn't ask her about what had happened a few minutes ago with everyone, which he thankfully didn't.

Sweet started off the ceremony by bringing up Mara to receive her medal, and to everyone's surprise, Fabian ran up to the stage and told Sweet to give the medal to him. Juliana rose subconsciously, knowing something was up. Everyone else seemed to think Fabian was being a sore loser however. Fabian looked back to face the crowd, and then ran out. Juliana paused for a millisecond, knowing she shouldn't skip out on graduation, but that medal was important to the touchstone so Fabian was probably onto something.

"I can't believe I'm doing this." She muttered. She tossed her cap down to the floor and chased after her boyfriend, yelling his name out after him as she fled the gym.

Juliana got into the clearing just in time to see Fabian running at Mara, who wore the medal…and it was glowing. Sophia told KT to wait, and Juliana understood that KT was the sacrifice...until Mara came along. Because Mara wore the symbol of Ra, she would be the sacrifice.

KT seemed to wake up from her trance and the sky went dark. Fabian yelled at Mara to stay back, and grabbed her in an effort to prevent her from moving forward. He was trying to save her life, but she did something to him, and he collapsed to the ground. He moaned in pain and Juliana screamed out his name in a panic, and sprinted to him. It was like seeing Jerome collapse back then all over again. "Fabian, Fabes, you're okay. Okay? You're fine." She looked over him and checked for any wounds but he stopped her and tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. "Thanks Julie." He whispered, looking up into her eyes, and the pair smiled at each other.

Juliana took a deep breath. "I saw you fall…and Fabes I'm so sorry about yelling at you earlier. T makes sense you'd be worried about the world. I was the dumb one."

"You were." He admitted and then they both laughed, knowing Faban didn't actually mean it. "I'm sorry too." He leaned in to kiss her and for one moment, they were oblivious to the battle going on right in front of them.

Eddie managed to snatch the medal off of Mara, and Juliana helped Fabian up, supporting him as they watched the scene unfold. Then, beams of light came raining down, and everyone began to flee. Fabian and her hurried over to the other Sibunas and they saw Mr. Sweet get caught by these beams from Ra and fall to the ground. Eddie ran to him, but within moments he was back up again and walking toward the pyramid resigned to his fate as the Osirion.

"Eddie? What's he doing? Eddie!" Juliana screamed to her friend as he put his hands on the pyramid. Fabian wrapped his arms around Juliana from behind to prevent her from running forward to interfere, but she fought anyway. Eddie had saved her when no one else could have. They'd come so far from their first meeting, and now she was supposed to sit back and watch him die? Eddie did the impossible for her, and she wasn't allowed to return the favor?

As Eddie fell back, everyone ran forward to him, but based on Sweet's reaction, it was obvious Eddie was gone. Unable to look, Juliana turned her back on the scene and wrapped her arms around Fabian's torso and cried onto his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her back tightly, trying to comfort her, but he didn't know what he could do. He knew Juliana was close to Eddie. Almost as close to Eddie as she was to him. But as the color came back to Eddie's face and he opened his eyes, Fabian shook Juliana to pull her out of the burrow she'd made in his embrace. She moved her head and looked over to see Sweet and Patricia pulling Eddie to his feet.

Tears streaming down her face, Juliana left Fabian and threw her arms around Eddie's neck. "You idiot. I thought you were dead. And I couldn't do anything to protect you." She rocked back and forth with Eddie for a moment, and while it seemed a little out of place for them to do so, as they weren't a couple, KT got it. They had been the only three to remember everything after the sinner thing. And Eddie and Juliana had known each other longer than KT had known either of them. Juliana pulled away and wiped at her tears, laughing. "We have a graduation to get to!" she told everyone, trying to hide the fact that she'd been crying. Everyone laughed and they all walked back to the school. Fabian came up behind Juliana and wrapped his arm around her waist, and she smiled. She took his hand and tugged him along, laughing and giggling. The knight was always there, even when there wasn't any finger paint in sight.

They got to front of the school and Juliana let go of Fabian's hand when she saw someone standing off to side. Letting Fabian go ahead with the others, she walked over to Jerome with a suspicious smile on her face.

"What are you doing out here Jerome?"

He held out her cap. "I thought you may need this after you beat whatever Egyptian thing came after you guys this time." Her face softened, and she looked down to see the cap. She took it hesitantly and put it on top of her head, thanking him.

"Jerome…thank you so much."

"It was nothing really-"

She cut him off. "No. Thank you. For everything. I may not seem like I care about you anymore, but I mean it when I say I'm glad we met. I don't regret it. I am sorry things played out the way it did though. I wish we could have been friends after everything." She moved forward to kiss his cheek, but deciding that was too much, she simply patted him on the arm. "We did good." She told him, refercing graduating, Sibuna, and their relationship. She then headed inside to take her seat, knowing Jerome would follow afte her and sit beside her in the gymnasium. She took a deep breath and bit her lip to keep tears from flowing as she headed into the gym. Jerome started after her for a moment, and then, feeling worse than ever about how things did end up between them, wishing she had said they could be friends again after school ended, and knowing he had really screwed up when it came to her and even though she'd be sitting next to him in there, she was completely gone and out of his reach- he followed her lead, just like he always had, and always would.

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	47. Happy Endings

"They say that graduation is the biggest day of your life. And now I understand why. It's an ending, and an beginning, all at once." Mara said in her speech. Juliana knew how true that was. Leaving Sibuna and everyone, but starting off on one of the biggest mysteries anyone could face- life as an adult, was something else. Mara's advice to everyone was to go and have fun and party, like it was the last day of their lives, which it near well was. Everyone threw their caps into the air and Juliana immediately darted away from Jerome to squeal and hug Joy and Patricia, the girls she'd known the longest. Mara ran over and joined in the girls' hug, and while they wished Amber was here, as one of the original girls before everything started coming undone, it was still sweet.

Seeing the boys, Juliana went up to them and hugged Eddie and Alfie tightly at the same time. She pulled back and looked at both their faces and hugged them again. There was a light tap on her shoulder, and Juliana turned to see KT and Fabian there. So she first hugged KT, and told her to keep in touch when she went back to the States, and then she turned to Fabian.

"Well here we are." She smiled.

"We've been together since the paint in preschool." He nodded. And no more words were needed. They'd always been a pair. As best friends or as a couple. The only time they'd been separated was when Juliana wasn't put into Anubis House when she first got here, instead ending up in Isis House, and then went she went with her dad to France for 6 months. But even then, there was always the internet to keep them in touch, so it wasn't too bad.

In the embrace she rested her head on Fabian's shoulder and closed her eyes, ignoring the signs stating the names of the houses behind the podium. She heard everyone cheering and talking and people taking pictures together and some even crying. Eventually, she pulled apart from Fabian and grinned. "We'll be on the same campus next year anyhow. Even though we have different majors, we'll see each other around the grounds sometimes. And we'll definitely still hang out." She promised, taking his hands in hers and intertwining their fingers.

"You've always been within a car ride from me huh? You live just two streets down back home too." He shook his head and laughed. She didn't say anything else, but she pecked him on the lips and then locked up at clock and said she had to hurry for hair appointment in town and rushed out to catch the taxi she had called to be at the gates for her at this time a few days ago. She waved to everyone and headed out. She got to the taxi and looked back up at the school looming in front of her, and her red and gold gown waved slightly in the breeze. Tomorrow would be her final goodbye to this place. She sighed and got into the taxi, pulling off her graduation gown to reveal a plain white summer dress. And then she was off.

Back at the house, Juliana walked down the stairs in a fancy dress for the last time. She reached the bottom where Fabian was waiting for her. He looked at her hair for a moment, and then her dress and complimented how she looked. He held out his arm for her and she looped hers through his, and they headed off to the school. They were eating when Eddie and Patricia rushed up to the table to tell them Victor was leaving Anubis House.

"What?" Juliana gasped and stood up from the table immediately, pushing her chair back. "Did you tell the others?"

"We're all heading back to the house now to say goodbye." Eddie told her and Fabian nodded, and the four of them ran out. Back at the house once more, Victor came down the stairs, holding Corbier and his luggage. He pulled a pin out of his coat jacket once he reached the floor landing, and let it fall, for old times sake, and everyone began to clap.

Victor muttered how they were all miscreants, and knowing Victor was never really the worst guy ever, and he did care for the students in his own sick and twisted way, Juliana called out to him once he got to the door and she hugged him. For some reason she was very big on hugging lately.

"Thank you Victor." She whispered, as she pulled away and she could've sworn she saw the corner of his mouth twitch up into a smile for a second before he scowled once more and left for good. She watched him disappear as he walked off, and she heard Joy ask if it was really it.

"And this whole place is still standing." Eddie seemed in awe.

"Despite our best efforts." Alfie joked, and everyone laughed. Juliana turned back and headed inside to the foyer and grinned at what Alfie had said.

"We did good didn't we?" Fabian said, acknowledging everything that had happened ever since Nina had come. Juliana nodded at him from across the foyer and everyone looked around at each other, agreeing with the statement.

"You know, back there, there's a party with our name on it." Jerome pointed out and walked over to where Juliana was by the door. Everyone filed out then, with Juliana and Jerome in the lead. He managed to snatch one of her earrings as they walked and he started to run off with it.

"Jerome!" Juliana yelled at him, but he laughed and kept running. She shook her head with a knowing smile, knowing he was trying to lighten things between them, even if only for the night, because after this, they'd probably never see each other again. She pulled off her high heels, and chased after Jerome around the grounds, leaving everyone else to shake their heads and laugh at how much like the old days it seemed to be. Jerome being a prankster and Juliana playing along. From the loud laughs the pair were exhibiting, it seemed all was well for a bit.

Finally, Juliana snatched the earring from Jerome when they got into the party, and she caught her breath.

"Jerome Clarke, I swear-" she gasped, and he smirked before walking off to talk to Joy. For a minute, everything was like the old days, but seeing him desert her for Joy put her back into her place and she remembered what it was like now between them. She turned to go towards the table, but Mara and Fabian were getting pretty cozy over there, and with a resigned look, she headed over to the punch table to grab a drink. Joy pulled Jerome onto the dance floor, and Juliana watched them from afar, and seeing the way Jerome danced reminded her just how smooth he was in contrast to her knight, the one who had two left feet when it came to dancing. Ever since they were kids, he'd always stepped on her toes when they would play Cinderella. Juliana's smile at the memory fell when she realized something. But interrupting her thoughts was a hand in her vision suddenly. She looked up and put her drink on the table to see the knight himself.

"Care to dance?" Fabian asked.

"With you? Always." Juliana smiled and let him lead her out onto the dance floor. The song wasn't too fast, so they were able to sway, her arms locked around his neck and his around her waist.

As they danced, Juliana told him, "You and Mara look good together."

"Julie-" Fabian started, ready to deny anything.

Juliana shook her head, wanting to talk, so he shut his mouth. "I know you would never cheat on me like he did. And if it happened with Mara again? I'd probably be insecure about it for the rest of my life. Imagine her, coming in and sweeping up every guy I was close to way back when. But you don't need to deny that you have feelings for her. I'm not mad, and I'm sure Nina would be okay with you moving on too. So you go, and you be Mara's Prince Charming. She got cheated on by the same guy as me, so we're in the same boat there. Just don't step on her feet like you used to do with mine." They both laughed at the memory. "Fabes, you were never the prince. You were always my knight. And there's a difference there. Kissing you, there wasn't a spark. Our relationship was the same as ever, but with more cuddles and kissing. It was great, and you're the best guy I've ever known, but you need to be happy with someone who gives you that spark when you kiss her. And just watching you and Mara talk was an explosion of chemistry. And I need to let you go be with her, because if not, I'll only be trapping you here with me. You're my best friend Fabes…but that's all we were meant to be. But personally, I think a best friend is way better than a boyfriend. We may have had crushes on each other growing up, but we faced it too late. We'd fallen for different people."

"I love you-" Fabian tried but Juliana smiled weakly.

"You were never in love with me though." She told him earnestly and he sighed.

"You're perfect, you know that? Don't let any guy make you feel otherwise. You're smart, and funny, and beautiful. And if you hadn't been there in Sibuna, things wouldn't feel the same."

Juliana's eyes brightened at that and she replied back, "Same to you Fabian. No one would be here if it wasn't for you being the main brains of the operation." She pecked him on the lips once more, and said it was a goodbye kiss. Then she kissed his cheek and whispered, "Thanks. For being my best friend."

"Well, if there's anything I can do for you as the princess' knight, I can spin you into the arms of your prince." And on that note, Juliana was twirled outwards, and just as Fabian let go of her hand, someone else grabbed the other, and pulled her in to dance with them.

She looked up into her so-called prince's blue eyes and breathed out, "Jerome."

He smiled, "Hello Juliana." He said as they danced. "I see the blonde hair is back."

Juliana didn't say anything about her going back to her real hair color, because she lost him after he said her real name. He didn't mess it up or say Jillian or anything. She was in awe.

"You said my name." she mumbled and he laughed. "Would you prefer me call you Jillian, Juliana?"

Him saying her real name sounded too weird now that he actually had gotten used to it, so she nodded. He seemed content with that and he put his hands on her waist as they danced.

"Jerome, what about Joy? If she sees us dancing like this, she'll get the wrong idea." Juliana hissed, looking around frantically to see if Joy could see.

"It's fine. I talked to Joy earlier, and it sounded a lot like what your speech to Fabian was. About how we weren't supposed to be together, go get the girl over there blah blah. You know how Joy is with her rants."

"Jerome, you were supposed to be happy with her. You two didn't break up did you?" Jerome didn't answer and Juliana's eyes went wide. She broke apart from him and started hitting Jerome, calling him all sorts of things and yelling at him for throwing away his fourth chance. Finally, once Juliana exhausted herself, Jerome began dancing with her again, and Juliana realized he had let her do it. "You let me hit you…so I'd get to hurt you like you deserve." She swallowed and she slapped him across the face. "You moron. Thinking you know what's best for me when you don't."

He rubbed his jaw delicately and took it silently, which pissed Juliana off more until Jerome said, "But Fabian does know what's best for you. He always does."

"What? What do you mean?" Juliana completely stopped moving.

"Everyone decided that you should get your happy ending after everything."

Juliana stepped back. "So I can't decide for myself? And you, and the girls, and Fabian, and Eddie, and everyone else has to decide for me?"

"No, that's not what I mean. What I'm saying is, well…here." He pulled out the sapphire necklace from his jacket pocket and Juliana's hands flew to her cover her mouth as her eyes welled up with tears. "May I?" he asked and Juliana eagerly turned around to let him clasp the necklace on. She faced him and looked down, her neck no longer bare. This necklace symbolized everything for them. And the fact that Jerome had kept it all this time? That spoke louder than words ever could.

"Jillian. My Jillian. Take me back. Please. I'll never hurt you again, Believe me, everyone warned me they'd kill me if I did. Especially Fabian. He told me that if he was going to hand you over to me, that I better treat you right. He cares about you. He's a good friend."

"The best."Juliana agreed and they danced closer.

"So will you take me back?" Jerome asked.

As they danced, Juliana could see Fabian and Mara kissing over by the table and she stared at them in silence in the midst of all the pounding music and flashing lights. Jerome caught her eye and followed her gaze to see the pair. "Does it bother you?" he asked in her ear.

"Not really." She told him. "You?"

"Not really." He admitted. Juliana sighed, knowing she had to answer Jerome about getting back together.

"Jerome, after you kissed me in the library and then stabbed me in the back again to choose Mara, I had to move on. I've grown as a person and just running back to you destroys any change I've gone through."

"So that's a no then." Jerome's face fell and Juliana giggled, causing him to look back to her.

"You're lucky you're cute." Juliana told him and, excited, Jerome pressed his lips to Juliana's. And Juliana knew the familiar feeling and knew that it was right. Maybe they'd break up during their times at university, but for now, every part of her being was saying to get over her pride and be with him. He'd obviously grown too just as she had. He was still the boy she first fell for. He was just as funny and cute and tall and charming and gorgeous and cunning as ever. He placed his hands on the sides of her face and she reached up to entangled her hands in his hair. They didn't seem to come up for air until the other Anubis students came over and poked them, laughing at how the lovebirds were back. Juliana ad Jerome pulled away from each other and smiled at everyone, blushing madly.

Everyone grinned at one another, whether single like KT and Joy, or being all cutesy with their boyfriend or girlfriend like everyone else was, with the boys' arms wrapped around their girl's waists, keeping them close, and they all began to dance like it was the last night of their lives. In the midst of dancing with everybody, she leaned up to kiss Jerome on the lips, saying that the feeling was something she had missed too much. Jerome grinned and spun her around in a hug. Once he set her down though, everybody danced together, all the Anubis students, and Juliana looked around at all of them- Mara, KT, Joy, Patricia, Eddie, Alfie, Willow, Fabian, and Jerome, and knew she wouldn't have traded this moment, and even this last year, even despite all the ups and downs, for anything in the world.

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**Well guys, this is it. It's been an amazing three years, and I've grown so much as a writer with the help of this story, and most importantly- all of you! Thank you to everyone for giving Juliana "Jillian" Clarewell and her story a chance, and to keep up with it, whether you've been reading since the first, or if you just discovered this story today. Thank you for reading it, and trusting me to go wherever I needed to go with the story, despite there being plot points you may not have liked, such as Fabiana, and thank you especially if you did support these sorts of subplots. I do hope you liked this ending, as originally, my plan was always to have Juliana end up single and independent. But that's not very satisfying with all the Jerome and Juliana angst over the years, now is it? And I honestly like this ending much more. What do you think? What was your favorite year for Juliana? Favorite plot or part? Least favorite things? Favorite lines and relationships and whatnot? I'd love to know what my readers enjoyed about my story, and tell me what you think of everything, including this ending, in REVIEWS!**

**I hope to see you all again in another story someday, and who knows? Maybe Juliana will return for an episode with the newbies on a break from college or something ;) (If the show gets picked up for a 4th series of course). **

**Thank you, from the ever grateful writer,**

**~meaganl124**

**p.s And as always, don't forget to-**

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